The Presidency has addressed widespread public concern over a viral photograph showing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in a meeting with Rwanda’s President, Paul Kagame, in Paris, France.
The image, which carried a Grok watermark, sparked intense debate online, with many Nigerians questioning its authenticity and accusing the Presidency of sharing an AI-generated photograph, described by critics as embarrassing.
Presidency Debunks AI Claims
Reacting to the controversy, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, dismissed the claims and explained how the image was produced.
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Onanuga described the AI allegations as false and based on misunderstanding, urging the public and media practitioners to verify facts before drawing conclusions.
... read; “STOP PRESS! The narrative that the picture of Presidents Bola Tinubu and Paul Kagame taken in Paris yesterday was AI generated is not correct.
“The media report and social media comments that followed are misrepresentation of facts. The picture is real and not AI generated as claimed.
“Both President Kagame and President Tinubu met in Paris had lunch together on Sunday (yesterday).
“The two leaders later had dinner with President Macron same yesterday evening. The picture was taken with a phone and obviously had poor quality.
“The photographer only later used grok to improve the picture quality. That is not a reason to conclude it was AI generated. The writer or editor should have asked questions before this wrong conclusion.”
Social Media Reactions Continue
Despite the clarification, reactions have continued online, with some Nigerians accepting the explanation while others remain sceptical about the use of AI tools in official communications.