Controversy Trails Buhari’s trip To Japan

By Uche Mbah

There has been controversy over pictures uploaded by one of Buhari’s Media Aid, Bashir Ahmad, showing President Buhari in Japan with Japanese youths dressed in Nigerian traditional attire, with some claiming the picture was lifted and photoshoped from a youth event in south Africa.

Some of the copies of picture, retrieved from Buhari’s New Media aide, Bashir Ahmad on his verified Twitter handle (@Bashirahmad) and circulated by both mainstream media and blogs has been largely have tried to exposes what they termed as the photoshops.

Buhari traveled to japan to attend a conference, according to his Media Aid, Femi adesina. His trip is coming at a time many world leaders are in Paris.

The picture has already set the social media agog, with many criticizing the picture, which was said to have the logo of International Youth fellowship on the banner carried by the youths.

Many twitter users believe that Buhari is not in Japan, though others say the evidence cannot be conclusive. Yet others pointed out that there was no pictures of Buhari with Japanese Officials.

But a picture later surfaced online showing Buhari with Japanese officials, though not in the African development conference.

Recall that the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has threatened that they will disgrace Buhari in Japan in obedience to the order of their supreme leader, Nnamdi kanu.

But IPOB has claimed that Buhari is not in Japan, that the pictures being circulated were photoshops, a statement that was denied by the presidency which urged Nigerians to disregard the allegation.

“Nigerians at home and in the Diaspora are urged to disregard concocted stories, backed with spurious visuals, of any protest or harassment of the President and his team. It is the stock-in-trade of hate mongers, who do not realize that the rest of Nigerians have left them far behind”, Adesina said in a statement.

The controversy continues as IPOB and the Presidency continue with their war of words.