The Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, has condemned social media influencer Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VDM, over the circulation of an alleged fake audio recording purportedly linked to the President.
Onanuga, in a statement issued on Wednesday, accused VDM of spreading false and misleading information capable of damaging the image of President Tinubu and misleading the public.
According to the presidential aide, the influencer’s actions amount to an abuse of social media and should attract legal consequences.
“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,” Onanuga said.
The controversy followed a video purportedly shared by VDM in which he claimed to have obtained an audio recording allegedly featuring Tinubu speaking on insecurity, politics and the 2027 elections.
While introducing the clip, the influencer questioned Nigerians who still support the President.
“After this audio that I am about to play, I would ask if they cooked Nigerians who will support Tinubu in 2027 or you guys are okay,” he said.
In the controversial recording, the voice allegedly attributed to Tinubu made remarks concerning insecurity in the South-East, political opponents and continued borrowing from the World Bank.
Parts of the audio also allegedly suggested that insecurity could influence future elections, comments that sparked reactions online.
However, Onanuga dismissed the recording as fabricated and accused VDM of deliberately circulating false content.
He warned that the spread of manipulated or unverified materials on social media could threaten public trust, democratic stability and national security.
The Presidency has yet to indicate whether formal legal proceedings will be initiated against the influencer.
As of the time of filing this report, VDM had not publicly responded to Onanuga’s remarks.
