Altered video used to falsely claim Nigerian president made accusations in Afrobeat star’s death

“Finally!!!! Tinubu speaks about Mohbad death (sic),” reads the caption of a TikTok video published on September 30, 2023.

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A screenshot of the altered TikTok video, taken on October 3, 2023

Viewed more than 513,000 times, the clip shows Tinubu giving a televised speech.

The news headline at the bottom of the screen reads: “President  Bola Tinubu”. The top left corner features a TVC News logo. TVC News is a Nigerian 24-hour television news channel based in Lagos. 

“Even though Naira Marley was the one who killed Mohbad, they can’t arrest him because Naira Marley is my boy and my business partner,” Tinubu purportedly says in the video. 

While several commenters seem to doubt the video’s authenticity, others express their dismay at Tinubu’s alleged involvement with Marley.

Untimely death

MohBad, whose real name was Ilerioluwa Oladimeji Aloba, died in unspecified circumstances on September 27, 2023 (archived here). He was 27 years old.

Protestors took to the streets following his death, demanding an investigation into the incident (archived here).

National police in Lagos state, Nigeria’s economic and cultural capital, announced they had formed a special team to conduct a “fair and transparent investigation”.

Nigerian social media has been flooded with speculation that Marley (real name Azeez Fashola) was linked to MohBad’s death. 

The singer signed a deal with Marley’s record label in 2019, but local media reported that the two parted ways on bad terms in 2022 (archived here).

MohBad also accused Marley of assault months before his death (archived here).

On October 3, 2023,  a spokesperson for the Lagos police announced Marley was taken into custody for questioning (archived here). 

However, the claim that the video shows Tinubu publicly discussing Marley’s alleged involvement in Mohbad’s death is false.

Altered video

In the clip, Tinubu’s mouth movements are clearly out of sync with the audio, although it does seem to sound like his voice.

Using a reverse image search, AFP Fact Check found the original footage in a TVC News report from June 2, 2023 (archived here).

AFP Fact Check verified several elements to confirm this is the same footage seen in the TikTok clip.

In both videos, Tinubu is sitting in a chair with the presidential seal and wearing the same clothing.

From approximately 01’08” to 01’12”, Tinubu’s movements in the original video align with those in the TikTok clip. 

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Comparison screenshots showing the original footage (left) and the altered version, taken on October 3, 2023

In the original footage, filmed months before MohBad’s death, Tinubu announces the appointment of several government officials.

“…decisions that you have seen and I thank you for supporting, for encouraging…is one I inherited, and it is fundamental, inherit the asset and liability of my predecessor. That’s it,” he says.

He does not discuss Marley or refer to him as a “business partner”.

Artificial intelligence

The video was posted by an account that AFP Fact Check has already debunked for sharing an altered clip of Tinubu.

The account does not label the videos as generated by artificial intelligence.

With the rise of artificial intelligence, it is becoming increasingly easy to create fake audio for high-profile individuals (archived here). 

AFP Fact Check has created a guide with tips to identify AI-generated content, which you can read here.