A book has recently surfaced on international platforms under the title Body Double: The Game of Power. Marketed as a gripping political thriller, the book spins a tale of extraordinary deceit: that a Nigerian president, after secretly dying in a London hospital, was replaced by a Western-manufactured humanoid robot, engineered to replicate his mannerisms, voice, and memories. In the book’s pages, this artificial “leader” returns to Nigeria, resumes the presidency, and manipulates the state under the control of foreign intelligence. The plot thickens as family, aides, and opposition politicians slowly detect inconsistencies, while journalists and activists who investigate are eliminated by clandestine strikes.
For those who do not know Nigeria’s political history, this may read as a provocative thriller. But for Nigerians and Africans at large, it is not merely fiction—it is a dangerous assault on our democratic memory, deliberately borrowing from old conspiracy theories and embellishing them with robotic fantasies. To be clear, there is no record, no evidence, and no political documentation to suggest that Nigeria’s sovereignty has ever been compromised in such a grotesque and sci-fi manner.
Recycling a Dead Conspiracy
The idea that a Nigerian president was replaced by a double is not new. In 2017, when President Muhammadu Buhari spent months receiving treatment in London, rumor merchants fueled speculation that he had died and been secretly replaced by a Sudanese man named “Jubril.” The claim found currency among agitators, some of whom used it to advance separatist politics and discredit the state. In December 2018, Buhari himself laughed off the rumor while addressing the international community in Poland, declaring bluntly: “It is the real me, I assure you.”
Despite the president’s direct rebuttal, the conspiracy persisted in dark corners of social media, thriving on Nigeria’s polarized politics and public distrust in transparency. What this book does is resuscitate that baseless narrative, only now dressed with pseudo-technological imagination—substituting a Sudanese impostor with a humanoid robot. This is not creative originality; it is recycled propaganda masquerading as literature.
The Fallacies at the Heart of the Book
The first and greatest fallacy is the alleged concealment of a president’s death by Western intelligence. Nigeria is a sovereign state with functioning institutions—the Federal Executive Council, the National Assembly, the courts, the armed forces, and most importantly, the Nigerian people. The suggestion that all could be deceived by a robotic impostor insults not just the government but the citizenry.
The second fallacy lies in the supposed existence of ultra-realistic humanoid robots capable of such deception. While artificial intelligence and robotics have advanced, no credible scientific evidence supports the existence of machines so perfect that they can replicate a human president in all his gestures, voice, and intimate interactions. This belongs in cinema, not in political commentary.
The third fallacy is the depiction of Nigerian activists and journalists as victims of coordinated Western assassinations. Nigeria’s press space is vibrant and combative, often critical of government excesses, and protected—however imperfectly—by constitutional guarantees. To fabricate such a dystopian scenario is to malign the very individuals who, in reality, risk their lives daily for the truth without the dramatic cloak of robotic doubles.
Constitutional and Legal Framework
Nigeria is not a lawless state. The 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) provides in Section 39(1) that “Every person shall be entitled to freedom of expression, including freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart ideas and information without interference.” However, this freedom is not absolute. Section 45(1) qualifies it, permitting restrictions in the interest of defense, public safety, public order, public morality, or the rights of others.
Furthermore, the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act of 2015 criminalizes the spread of false information likely to cause fear, alarm, or undermine public confidence in government institutions. Section 24 of that Act specifically prohibits the intentional distribution of false messages that can affect national security or public peace. The publication of a book that insinuates Nigeria is governed by a robotic impostor, under foreign manipulation, fits squarely into the type of false information designed to destabilize public trust.
The author of Body Double must therefore be called to account. He cannot hide behind the ambiguity of “fiction” while distributing his work as though it were a hidden truth of Nigerian politics. He must make a bold and public statement: is his book entirely fictional, a creative work of imagination? Or does he claim it is grounded in fact? If the latter, then he must present his evidence before the Nigerian people and the law. If the former, then it must be clearly marketed and labeled as fiction, not as exposé. Anything short of that is a calculated fraud.
A Call for Due Process
Nigeria is a democracy governed by law, not by rumor. The Presidency must not respond with raw censorship or knee-jerk bans, for that would transform the author into a victim in the eyes of global opinion. Instead, due process must be followed. Let the courts summon him. Let him answer questions under oath. Let him either substantiate his claims or retract them with an apology to the Nigerian people. This sets the right precedent: literature and journalism must be free, but freedom cannot be abused to peddle deliberate untruths that compromise national stability.
At the same time, Nigerians themselves must exercise restraint. The book is designed to provoke outrage, to sow division, to invite global ridicule of Nigeria as a gullible state. By treating it with contempt rather than fascination, the public robs the author of his greatest weapon: attention.
In sum, Body Double: The Game of Power is not a bold work of political imagination. It is a cheap manipulation of old conspiracies, inflated with science fiction and marketed to exploit Nigeria’s complex democracy for commercial gain. It undermines public trust, spreads falsehood, and maligns the dignity of the Nigerian state.
The law is clear. The Constitution allows free speech but forbids malicious falsehood. The Cybercrime Act prohibits false publications that threaten national security. The sovereignty of Nigeria is not up for sale in the international marketplace of sensational lies.
The author must be brought before the court of truth—both legally and morally—to prove his claims or confess his fabrication. Only then can Nigeria turn this episode into a lesson: that our democracy, though imperfect, is not so fragile that it can be mocked and sabotaged without consequence.
Nigeria deserves better. Democracy deserves better. Truth deserves better.
