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As we move closer to the 2027 election, supporters of different political parties are exploring social media to promote and defend their candidates. In the process, many users resorted to sharing false, malicious, deceptive, and sometimes ridiculous posts to spread disinformation targeting opponents.
In a similar pattern, an X user, “Mayor of Calabar” (Uno_009), on Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026, shared an image (archived here) featuring the Africa Democratic Congress (ADC) logo alongside a photo of the party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar. The post claimed Atiku promised to provide free kidneys to every patient with kidney failure in Enugu State.
As of Friday, Sept. 4, 2026, the post has gained over 2,500 views, 41 comments, 45 likes, and 25 reposts.
Similar posts circulated on Facebook, as seen here and here.
To verify this, we checked the official social media pages of the ADC political party but found no similar assertion.
We also checked Atiku’s social media handles to confirm whether the former vice-president had uploaded a similar post, but found none.
Although the claim and image were manipulated using the ADC logo to appear authentic, many users believed the video. Meanwhile, another user shared the same kidney donation claim with different graphics attributed to Atiku.
DUBAWA observed that days after Atiku unveiled his manifesto ahead of the 2027 election, social media users began attributing false statements to him, spreading disinformation to target his political reputation.
Using AI to create a fake newspaper front page
Over the past few days, social media users have been circulating different newspaper front pages with bold headlines attributed to Atiku.
In one post, an X user, @Banty4them (archived here), on Thursday, Sept. 4, 2026, shared a picture of the front page of “The Kachalla Newspaper” with a headline that reads, “Each Nigerian citizen will be given a car and a house each if I become president,” attributing the quote to Atiku Abubakar.
The post, sarcastically captioned, “Congratulations Nigerians! It is a new dawn of white elephant promises,” has generated over 1,700 views, 136 likes, 32 comments, and 52 reposts since it was uploaded.
A keyword search for the newspaper and statements attributed to Atiku shows that such a newspaper does not exist, and no official publication has confirmed that Atiku made such statements.
In the comments, we noticed that most users were more concerned with supporting their candidate than questioning the post’s authenticity.
One comment by @Ronkecarey reads, “No surprises here, typical of Him. The good thing is he won’t ever become the president by God’s grace.”
Another user, @Omo28015Talabi, wrote, “Where are the houses and cars you gave us when you were vice president?”
In a separate newspaper manipulation, an X user, @Sistaliano, shared a post (archived here) supposedly from Sahara Reporters, claiming that Atiku promised to sell the Central Bank if elected. “I will sell the Central Bank if I’m elected. Other countries have done it in the past,” reads the post caption.
The post accumulated over 23,900 views, 357 likes, 147 comments, 186 reposts and 14 bookmarks as of Friday, Sept. 4, 2026.
To investigate the claim, we checked whether Sahara Reporters published similar statements, videos, or posts, but found no publication or post from Atiku making such a promise.
Further searches led us to similar posts shared on Facebook, as seen here and here.
We also came across a post (archived here) uploaded on Thursday, Sept. 4, 2026, claiming Atiku pledged to increase the number of Southeast states to 8 and ensure they can access the ocean and have a seaport if he is elected in 2027. The post used the name and logo of another media outlet, Press Xpress Nigeria. However, a search of the outlet’s original account found no record of the purported report.
Our search results revealed that Atiku promised to reopen and develop borders in the South, citing the negative impact of border closure on businesses in the region. We, however, found no evidence that he said he would expand states in the Southeast region as claimed.
In another post (archived here), a newspaper headline from The Daily News appeared on X, quoting Atiku as saying, “I will give every Nigerian one bag of rice weekly when I become President.”
The post, which generated over 270 views, was not traced to any official statement, publication, or post linking the statement to Atiku.
Tinubu also becomes a target of fake headlines
Hours after users circulated disinformation targeting Atiku Abubakar following his proposals ahead of the 2027 election, President Bola Tinubu was dragged into the disinformation chain.
On Thursday, Sept. 4, 2026, an X user shared an image (archived here) of the front page of the “Nigerian Herald” with a bold headline that Tinubu promised to provide a 24-hour power supply if selected for a second term.
As of Friday, Sept. 4, 2026, the post gathered over 4,600 views, 163 likes, 119 reposts, 73 comments, and 13 bookmarks.
A keyword search on the claim found no credible publication attributing such statements to President Tinubu. DUBAWA found that the name ‘Nigerian Herald’ might be impersonating “Herald Newspaper” based in Kwara State.
We also found similar claims uploaded on Facebook here, here, and here.
screenshots of manipulated newspaper headlines targeting Tinubu. Photo Source: X
In a post shared by @Xagreat (archived here), purportedly reported by one “The Daily Tribune,” Tinubu had said Petrol price will sell for N5,000 per litre starting May 29, 2027.
While investigating, DUBAWA found that the front page was fabricated, as no Nigerian media outlet bears that name. Instead, the widely recognised media organisation with a similar name is ” Nigeria Tribune”.
In addition, the statement was falsely attributed because no report or statement validated its authenticity.
Using a similarly manipulated newspaper front page, the same user, @xagreat, claimed (archived here) that Tinubu said the Dollar may rise to 3,500/$ in 2027. However, we found no evidence that Tinubu made such claims.
In another post (archived here), the user alleged that President Tinubu threatened to jail students for life who refuse to repay their loans after graduation.
Upon investigation, we discovered that the quote attributed to Tinubu was fabricated, with no official record of the president making such a statement.
Analysing the viral fabricated newspaper front pages
DUBAWA carefully analysed the different newspaper front pages targeting Atiku and Tinubu and noticed a similar pattern. One similar pattern we noticed is that all the newspaper front pages have a similar year of establishment, volume, and issue number (Since 1951, Vol 75, no 0231), which points to the use of similar AI template tools to create the image.
Another flaw observed is that most front pages featuring Tinubu use a background picture showing the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Meanwhile, President Tinubu is not a member of the PDP, but of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
We also found several AI tools that may have been used to create the manipulated front pages, including Dremina, Canva, Adobe Express, the popular ChatGPT, among others.
AI disinformation and 2027 election
As technology continues to evolve, more advanced Artificial Intelligence models are becoming more accessible to users, making it easier to create and circulate digitally manipulated content and spread disinformation online.
Interestingly, most of these AI-generated visuals, including videos and pictures, are becoming more realistic, making it difficult for unsuspecting audiences to distinguish them from genuine content.
As the trend of creating fabricated newspaper pages spread across social media platforms, some users turned it into entertainment, sharing ridiculous and comical posts for fun, which can be viewed here, here, and here.
Amid growing concerns about using artificial intelligence to create misleading visuals that could fuel disinformation ahead of the 2027 election, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has warned of the potential impact on the electoral process.
To avoid this, the commission is conducting a comprehensive audit of its electoral technology systems and considering a mock presidential election to test its readiness ahead of the poll.