A top aide to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Tope Fasua (Special Adviser on Economic Affairs in the VP’s Office), has sparked public outrage after circulating a fabricated Sahara Reporters news graphic targeting Nigeria Democratic Congress’ presidential candidate, Peter Obi.
In a now-viral Facebook post, Fasua shared a graphic designed with the banner and branding of online investigative platform Sahara Reporters. The fabricated headline read: “FAKE DRUG PRODUCERS NEED ORIENTATION NOT DEATH SENTENCE – OBI REPLIES FG”
Accompanying the fake graphic, Fasua added a derogatory comment attacking the former Anambra State Governor: “The guy is congenitally damaged”
Fact-Check Busts the Lie
The post quickly drew intense backlash from social media users and public commentators, who exposed the headline as an outright hoax.
Media scholar and columnist Professor Farooq Kperogi publicly called out the presidential aide in the comment section:
“I looked this up, and it appears that the image is manipulated. There is no record of this story on Sahara Reporters’ website or social media handles. I asked AI to search Sahara Reporters’ website in case I missed something. It confirmed that no such story was ever published by the outlet.”
Other commentators equally lambasted Fasua for failing to conduct basic editorial due diligence before amplifying disinformation to the public.
Persistent Propaganda Campaign
This incident marks the latest in an ongoing pattern of coordinated disinformation and fabricated newspaper graphics falsely attributed to Peter Obi in recent months. Political observers have continued to decry how senior government appointees and state actors are actively relying on doctored imagery and fake quotes to smear opposition figures rather than engaging on issues of governance and public accountability.
