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Claim: A video shared by a YouTube channel, Bold Pan-African, claims that Peter Obi, former Nigerian presidential candidate, addressed Burkina Faso’s military leader, Ibrahim Traoré, in an emotional open letter, praising his leadership and calling for a united African future.
Verdict: False. DUBAWA’s investigation confirms that the video is a deepfake, misrepresenting Peter Obi with fabricated audio and visuals.
Full Text
Since seizing power in a 2022 coup, Burkina Faso’s military ruler, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, has gained prominence for his anti-Western stance and Pan-Africanist rhetoric. His administration severed ties with France, adopted Russian support, and implemented radical economic reforms, including the establishment of a state-owned mining company and the requirement that foreign firms transfer stakes and expertise to Burkinabé nationals.
While these bold moves have earned him regional admiration, they have also attracted a wave of misleading online propaganda. Artificial intelligence (AI)-generated videos have emerged featuring global music stars such as Rihanna, Justin Bieber, Beyoncé, and R. Kelly, allegedly praising Traoré; however, none of these are real.
Amidst this trend, a YouTube channel named Bold Pan-African posted a 49-minute video on May 30, 2025. The clip featured Peter Obi, Nigeria’s 2023 presidential candidate, seemingly delivering a heartfelt speech addressed to Traoré.
In the video, Obi appears to say, “My dear brother, President Ibrahim Traoré. Permit me to write to you, not merely as a fellow African leader, but as a concerned son of our continent. I see courage, not rebellion. I write to you not to offer advice, but to offer brotherhood. Your voice is not alone.”
The video description amplified this message: “Peter Obi’s Powerful Letter to President Ibrahim Traoré | Africa’s Path to Justice & Unity. In this emotionally stirring and visionary message, Nigerian statesman Peter Obi addresses President Ibrahim Traoré of Burkina Faso in a powerful open letter, calling for a united, sovereign, and prosperous Africa. With a tone of brotherhood and shared destiny, Obi honours Traoré’s bold leadership while urging deeper collaboration across African nations. This video is more than just a political statement — it’s a blueprint for Africa’s future, crafted with wisdom, passion, and purpose.”
As of June 6, 2025, the video had garnered over 96,000 views, 1,800 likes, and 730 comments. While some viewers praised Obi and accepted the video as genuine, others doubted.
@samuelaigbido1600 wrote “Very good letter from Gov PETER OBI… work well done in Burkina Faso and Africa.”
Another user, @mkpaeffiong1812, commended Peter Obi, stating “Mr. Obi… courageous leader that will bring change…”
Questioning the authenticity of this video, user @teboholekhanya8699 asked, “Is this real or just fiction? We need truth, not fiction.”
Another user, @ostarchris7350, wrote, “Beautiful letter. Though this is not PO’s voice.”
Also, on June 6, 2025 the same video tagged “Peter Obi’s Letter to President Ibrahim Traore of Burkina Faso PART 1” was posted by a Tiktok user, Tochi Stories (@tochi.stories). This post as of June 19, 2025 has garnered over 2,600 likes, 450 shares, and 260 comments with some audience believing the video is real.
On Facebook, the same narrative was shared as seen here and here.
The video’s oddness, Obi’s unnatural accent, and blurred lip movements raised suspicions, prompting DUBAWA to verify its authenticity.
Verification
First, DUBAWA conducted extensive keyword searches related to the supposed open letter. However, no reputable media outlet (local or international) published any reports or statements confirming that such a message came from Peter Obi to President Traoré.
We also found that none of Mr. Obi’s verified social media pages referenced the video or its content.
Upon closer examination of the video, we identified some red flags. One, the voice in the video did not match Peter Obi’s known speech patterns. It featured a forced foreign accent and intonation that differed significantly from his usual tone of voice. Two, the speaker’s mouth movements were unnaturally blurred and poorly synchronised with the audio, a standard indicator of AI manipulation.
Third, the video quality was suspiciously poor, which often masks imperfections in manipulated content.
DUBAWA used Google Lens and traced the source of the footage back to a Jan. 2, 2025, broadcast by Pulse TV Africa, which featured Peter Obi addressing the media on domestic governance issues in Nigeria. Both the original and the manipulated deepfake video shared the same news ticker at the bottom of the screen, which read:
“News Now: Governance – Peter Obi Urges President Bola Tinubu to Lead by Example in Addressing National Issues.”
This banner appears unaltered in both clips, indicating that the deepfake merely overdubbed the original audio with AI-generated speech to create a false narrative.
Further confirming its origin, DUBAWA found that the same Jan. 2, 2025, media address was widely covered and broadcast by other reputable news channels, including Channels TV, Arise News, and Africa Independent Television (AIT).
In these original broadcasts, Peter Obi addressed national issues, such as the rising cost of governance, and urged President Bola Tinubu to lead by example. At no point did he mention Burkina Faso or President Traoré.
DUBAWA also used tools such as Deepware and WeVerify to check for synthetic media or AI manipulation. While these tools did not conclusively detect the deepfake, due to current limitations in automated detection of subtle voice cloning and layered visuals, the evidence gathered through cross-referencing, video analysis, and source tracing was definitive.
Conclusion
The claim that Peter Obi delivered an open letter praising Burkina Faso’s President Ibrahim Traoré is false. The video is a deepfake, created by overlaying manipulated audio onto authentic footage from a media address. In the original video, Obi spoke strictly on Nigerian governance issues, not on Burkina Faso’s leadership.
This is not the first time a Nigerian public figure has been targeted by deepfake content. President Bola Tinubu and several others have also been subjects of similar manipulated videos by DUBAWA here, here, and here.
