Presidential aide faults VDM for sharing AI-generated Tinubu audio

Nigeria's Presidency has announced its intention to pursue legal action against social media commentator Martins Otse, widely known as Very Dark Man (VDM). The accusation centers on the circulation of an artificial intelligence-generated audio clip falsely attributed to President Bola Tinubu.

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This VDM needs to face the weight of the law for being the conveyor and disseminator of a fake audio of President Tinubu. This is a clear case of an egregious abuse of the social media platform.

According to Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, the simulated voice in the audio made damaging statements. These included claims that insecurity in the South-East was intentional, that President Tinubu had asked Labour Party candidate Peter Obi to withdraw from the 2022 election, and that World Bank loans were being diverted to fund elections. Onanuga condemned the dissemination of the fake audio as an "egregious abuse of the social media platform."

In a video shared with his followers, VDM played the audio and urged them to form their own conclusions, stating, "This man does not have anything to offer. Come 2027, any other option is welcome, but for me, myself and I, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu cannot offer us anything anymore. So he should go."

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You people watch it, see this next video I’m about to play. After you people watch it, we’ll come decide whether na for shrine them cook una mind. All the people wey wan support Bola Ahmed Tinubu for 2027, you go come know whether they don cook your mind.

This incident is part of a broader trend of AI-generated fake content targeting public figures. The Coalition for Ethical Technology and Democratic Integrity recently called on the government to criminalize AI-generated blackmail, classifying it as a national security threat. They warned that deepfakes and fabricated content could undermine the credibility of the upcoming 2027 elections.

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This man does not have anything to offer. Come 2027, any other option is welcome, but for me, myself and I, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu cannot offer us anything anymore. So he should go.

Onanuga's threat was a response to a post by an X user who flagged VDM's video, questioning the nature of "cheap propaganda" and suggesting VDM exploits the emotions of the Igbo people. However, checks by the correspondent indicated that VDM had not posted the specific audio in question on his videos.

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How do you really convince someone who has already decided and believes in their mind that this is actually Asiwaju’s voice? What kind of cheap propaganda is this? VDM knows that Igbos are highly emotional people, and that’s why he enjoys riding on their emotions.