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0 NewsGhana, Latest Updates and Breaking News of Ghana, News Ghana, https://www.newsghana.com.gh/nigerian-presidency-targets-vdm-over-doctored-tinubu-audio/Nigeria’s Presidency has threatened legal action against prominent social critic Martins Vincent Otse, widely known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), over an artificial intelligence (AI) generated audio clip falsely attributed to him that purports to show President Bola Tinubu declaring a firm intention to contest the 2027 election regardless of public opposition.
VDM’s lead counsel, Deji Adeyanju, immediately pushed back, confirming the audio was doctored and calling on security agencies to investigate the actual source.
The incident began circulating widely on Wednesday after footage appeared online showing what appeared to be VDM playing a recording in which a voice purporting to be President Tinubu also allegedly urges opposition figure Peter Obi to withdraw from the 2027 race. However, multiple commentators and online users quickly flagged that the audio was not VDM’s own content but an AI-generated voice note placed deceptively over one of his existing videos by unknown third parties.
Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to President Tinubu on Information and Strategy, responded on X by accusing VDM of being responsible for the content’s spread, writing that “this is a clear case of an egregious abuse of the social media platform” and calling for VDM to face the full weight of the law.
Adeyanju rejected that framing in a formal statement, saying a basic review of VDM’s verified social media accounts would have confirmed he neither produced nor shared the original doctored content. He described the Presidency’s public comment against his client without prior verification as surprising, and tied it to what he said was a pattern of attempts by powerful figures to suppress VDM’s voice on matters of public interest.
The lawyer instead called on the relevant security agencies to identify and prosecute whoever created and circulated the manipulated recording.
The episode highlights a growing challenge for public discourse in Nigeria ahead of the 2027 election cycle, as AI tools make it increasingly simple to produce convincing fake audio and video of prominent figures. The speed at which the Presidency responded without first verifying the clip’s origins has drawn its own scrutiny, with critics arguing the reaction threatened to criminalise an influencer for content he did not create.
NewsGhana, Latest Updates and Breaking News of Ghana, News Ghana, https://www.newsghana.com.gh/nigerian-presidency-targets-vdm-over-doctored-tinubu-audio/
