Nigeria’s presidency has called for legal action against social media influencer VeryDarkMan over the circulation of an alleged fake audio recording purportedly linked to President Bola Tinubu.
Presidential adviser Bayo Onanuga accused the influencer, whose real name is Martins Vincent Otse, of spreading false information through social media platforms. “This VDM needs to face the weight of the law for being the conveyor and disseminator of a fake audio of President Tinubu,” Onanuga wrote in a post on X on Wednesday.
The presidency said the audio clip circulating online was fabricated and described its dissemination as an abuse of social media platforms.
The controversy followed the circulation of a viral recording allegedly attributed to Tinubu, which critics and supporters of the government debated widely online.
“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 (“Watch this next video I’m about to play. After you watch it, we will decide whether your minds have been influenced in a ritualistic manner. All those who intend to support Bola Ahmed Tinubu in 2027 will then understand whether they have been mentally manipulated),” VDM said in the post.
The incident has reignited concerns in Nigeria over misinformation, social media regulation and freedom of expression.