The Presidency has rejected reports suggesting that a photograph showing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu with Rwandan President Paul Kagame in Paris was generated using artificial intelligence, describing such claims as false and misleading.
The clarification was issued on Monday by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Temitope Ajayi, following widespread media coverage and online commentary questioning the authenticity of the image.
According to the Presidency, the photograph, which was shared by the President’s spokesman, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, on his Facebook page, was taken during an official engagement between Presidents Tinubu and Kagame in Paris on Sunday.
“The narrative that the picture of Presidents Bola Tinubu and Paul Kagame taken in Paris yesterday was AI generated is not correct,” Ajayi said. “The media report and social media comments that followed are misrepresentations of facts.”
Ajayi explained that both leaders met in Paris on Sunday, where they had lunch together before later joining French President Emmanuel Macron for dinner the same evening.
He further clarified that the photograph was taken with a mobile phone, which affected its original quality. According to him, digital tools were later used to enhance the clarity of the image, but this did not mean it was artificially generated.
“The picture is real and not AI generated as claimed. The photographer only later used Grok to improve the picture quality. That is not a reason to conclude it was AI generated,” he stated.
Ajayi criticised media reports that labelled the image as fake, saying journalists and editors should have sought proper clarification before drawing conclusions.
“The writer or editor should have asked questions before this wrong conclusion,” he added.
The Presidency urged media organisations and the public to verify information carefully before spreading claims capable of misleading the public.
