Uche Amunike
Lifeandtimes News Writer
Former Governor of Edo state, Senator Adams Oshiomole, has dismissed the authenticity of a viral video, which is making the rounds since Tuesday, appearing to show him massaging the feet of a lady aboard a private jet, describing it as a clip created with the use of artificial intelligence (AI).
Recall that when the video clips surfaced initially on social media, the woman was wrongly identified as wife of the Senator representing Edo North in the red chambers. Subsequent reports however, identified her as a South African lifestyle influencer and adult content creator, Leshan Dagama. It was also alleged that she originally posted the video on her TikTok handle before deleting it.
The viral video elicited backlash against Senator Adams Oshiomole as many Nigerian criticized what they described as inappropriate conduct, especially at this time that Nigerians are experiencing economic hardship.
He was massively mocked on social media over his controversial remark that suggested that some Nigerians were complaining that ‘food prices are becoming too cheap’.
Speaking, through a statement released by Oshiomole’s media aide, Oseni Momodu, on his Facebook account, he described the video as fake and stated that it is a poorly crafted AI-generated video.
Momodu further stated that unnamed individuals masterminded the video so as to malign the reputation of Senator Adams Oshiomole. He described the circulation of the offending video as cyberbullying and added that steps were already being taken to investigate the source and publishers of the video clip.
The statement partly read: AI PROPAGANDA VIDEO AGAINST COMRADE OSHIOMHOLE: A CALL FOR CAUTION
‘The media office of His Excellency, Senator Adams OSHIOMHOLE has noted with dismay a poorly crafted and edited fake AI video of the outstanding Senator allegedly massaging the foot of a lady.’
‘We urge the public to jettison this false narrative that is in circulation to blackmail the people’s Comrade. It is an awkward height of insensitivity by unguarded power seekers who hide under the use of false information and can go to any length in bringing down an innocent assumed enemy, which the amiable Senator is not.’
‘In fact, we urge members of the public and the media to disregard its purport comprehensively and in totality.
This is a criminal cyber bullying and a needless attack on the personality of the Senator. And we will further investigate the publisher and the source of it.’
‘The video was clearly doctored by malicious actors aimed at maligning the reputation of the amiable Senator. In the footage, the 30 seconds video published by #SaharaReporters on its facebook handle revealed intent desperation and the decrying state of media reportage devoid of investigative professionalism.‘
According to Momodu, there are disparities between the opening seconds and the remainder of the footage which suggest manipulation at close examination.
His words: ‘Close examination of the alleged clip especially up till 0.6 seconds where the lady walked through the airstairs and the remainder 23 seconds of the alleged footage of Senator Oshiomhole significantly revealed disparity, glaringly suggesting contraption.’
He cautioned the public to verify contents before ignorantly ascribing aspersions on innocent people, especially public office holders.
He also called for strict regulation of social media contents while warning against the misuse of AI tools for misinforming the public and attacking people’s reputations.
Hear him: ‘This calls for urgent social media regulations by relevant authorities. While Adams Oshiomole is not against any content creators, those who desire to earn a living through this newfound outlets should do so through legitimate means, rather than engaging egregious practice.’
Meanwhile, Dagama reacted to the controversy on her Instagram Story, where she redirected all the criticisms towards the Senator.
Her words: ‘Your Senator is the problem. Go be mad at him not me.’
