Keyamo laughs off claim that Tinubu’s APC speech was recorded earlier

The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has laughed at opposition figures who say President Bola Tinubu’s speech at the launch of the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council was pre-recorded.

Keyamo made his comments in a post on X on Thursday. He said local and international media covered the event live and questioned why anyone would make such a claim.

"We thought we had seen and heard the worst nonsense from certain characters during the Buhari era when there was a conspiracy theory claiming that former Nigerian President, Muhammadu Buhari died during a medical treatment in London in 2017 and was replaced by a cloned body double or lookalike called Jubril from Sudan," he said.

He continued, "Now, some educated fellow (supposedly) comes up with an outrageous claim that the President’s appearance and speech yesterday at the launch of the APC Campaign Council was pre-recorded. Meanwhile, both the local and international Press physically covered the event LIVE."

Keyamo noted that he did not know whether to laugh or cry over the claim. He said he thinks some opposition figures are showing signs of mental distress.

Tinubu launched the APC Presidential Campaign Council on Wednesday at the State House Conference Centre in Abuja. This event is part of the ruling party's preparations for the 2027 general election.

The President is the chair of the council, with Vice-President Kashim Shettima and the APC National Chairman, Nentawe Yilwatda, as vice-chairmen. Former Zamfara State Governor Abdulaziz Yari is the Director-General, while Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma is the secretary.

The inauguration gathered party leaders and other political figures to plan the President’s re-election campaign.

Tinubu urged members of the council to engage voters in their wards and polling units. He stressed that their work would only matter if they secured votes in the upcoming election.

The APC plans to kick off its campaign rally on October 24 in Kaduna State.

The controversy started after activist Chidi Odinkalu posted on Wednesday. He questioned if Tinubu was really at the inauguration, suggesting the video of the President’s speech looked like it was pre-recorded.

Odinkalu wrote on X, "It does not require close study of this clip to understand that this was a pre-recorded address. @officialABAT was not at this venue in person.

"The transitions are un-natural, the camera work is a production & everything is an orchestration. The parties to the crime are many. Let them produce the clip of his promenade & a wide angle."

Keyamo did not name Odinkalu in his reply.

Bayo Onanuga, the presidential spokesman, also responded to Odinkalu’s post. He accused him of letting partisanship affect his judgment.

"You’ve let partisanship cloud your vision and judgment. You are now a member of the internet mob, eager to disregard the truth and push false narratives online. You should be ashamed of this post," Onanuga said.