Wasn’t AI: Oshiomhole Foot-Massage Video Sparks Fresh Controversy as Lady Breaks Silence
By: Abudu Olalekan
It started like most viral moments do.
Quietly. Then everywhere at once.
On Tuesday, social media lit up with a short video clip showing a man believed to be Senator Adams Oshiomhole in what looked like a relaxed, private moment — chatting casually while massaging a woman’s feet resting on his lap. No speeches. No podium. Just vibes. And controversy.
Almost immediately, denials followed.
Oshiomhole’s camp moved fast. Very fast. Through his media aide, Oseni Momodu, the former Edo State governor dismissed the clip as fake, calling it a “poorly crafted AI-generated video” that never happened. He warned Nigerians about cyberbullying, misinformation and the dangers of spreading unverified content online. According to the statement, efforts were already underway to trace those behind the video.
But the internet rarely moves in one direction.
At first, the woman in the clip was wrongly identified as Lara Fortes, Oshiomhole’s wife. That claim didn’t last long. Hours later, another name surfaced — Leshaan Dagama, a South African lifestyle influencer and adult content creator.
Then came the twist.
Dagama didn’t issue a press statement. She didn’t call a lawyer. She went straight to Instagram.
“Video wasn’t AI but okay believe your senator 😊,” she wrote on her story. Short. Sharp. Dismissive. The emoji said the rest.
Her post directly contradicted the AI claim and instantly reignited the debate. Was the video real? Was it staged? Or was the denial simply damage control?
Reports indicate Dagama had initially posted the clip on her TikTok account before quietly deleting it, a move that only fueled speculation. Screenshots, however, never forget. And neither does social media.
Dagama didn’t stop there.
In another post, she shifted the anger away from herself and back to the senator at the centre of the storm. “Your senator is the problem. Go be mad at him not me,” she wrote. No apology. No clarification. Just distance.
The situation highlights a familiar pattern in Nigeria’s digital space. Public figures deny. Supporters defend. The internet investigates. And somewhere in between, facts get tangled with loyalty and outrage.
So far, Oshiomhole has not personally addressed Dagama’s claim or responded to her posts. His media team maintains that the video is fake and malicious, insisting it was created to damage his reputation.
But Dagama’s blunt response has complicated that narrative.
In an era where artificial intelligence is often blamed for uncomfortable visuals, the line between truth and tech keeps getting thinner. Still, when someone involved says, plainly, “It wasn’t AI,” people listen. Or at least pause.
For now, the video remains online. Screens replayed. Opinions divided.
And one thing is certain.
This story isn’t cooling off anytime soon.
