Nollywood actress Anita Joseph and Nigerian socialite Ogechi Ukonu, known online as Caramel Plug, are involved in a public dispute over an edited photograph that Caramel says was taken from her without permission.
The disagreement began after Caramel Plug held a birthday photoshoot several weeks ago and posted the images on Instagram, captioning them with a message thanking God for her life.
The photos circulated without issue until they resurfaced on July 6, this time posted by Anita Joseph with her own face in place of Caramel’s.
Anita captioned the post, “A woman cannot submit and be in survival mode at the same time,” and responded to comments underneath it as though she were the original subject of the images.
Caramel Plug addressed the matter on Snapchat, stating that she and Anita Joseph do not follow each other on any social media platform. She wrote, “Anita, you removed my head from my picture and inserted your head in it and posted it publicly.”
Anita Joseph responded on Instagram with an apology, attributing the edit to an AI tool and stating that she would not knowingly involve herself in such a situation.
However, Caramel Plug rejected the explanation on July 9, telling Anita to ensure her “imaginary AI boy” performed better going forward, and noting again that the two women are not personally acquainted.
Anita Joseph replied the same day, shifting responsibility away from Caramel Plug and toward the studio she said produced the edited image. She wrote, “Caramel, I no blame you at all, na @ancestral_tech_ai I blame.”
The exchange has divided opinion online. On Instagram, some users described Anita’s apology as sincere and questioned why Caramel Plug responded sharply after receiving it.
Instagram creators had accused Caramel Plug of being disrespectful in her reaction to Anita Joseph’s public apology.
Reactions under the thread were largely critical of Caramel Plug. A user identified as E__Umoh agreed that the original edit was inappropriate but said Caramel Plug’s response was unnecessary. Another user, treatpworld, said Anita Joseph had apologized and questioned why Caramel Plug did not accept it and move on.
A user identified as Roselinechuku suggested that Caramel Plug should have addressed the matter privately rather than publicly, given that the two women had no prior history. A user going by Truthfullysayin made a similar point, stating that Anita Joseph had already expressed regret and questioning the tone of Caramel Plug’s reply.
Others sided with Caramel Plug, arguing that her frustration was reasonable given that the two women have no personal connection.
The debate has also extended to X, formerly Twitter, where several users pushed back on the explanation that an AI tool was responsible for the error.
One user, writing under the handle @Ferbin08, argued that AI systems generate output from existing training data and do not act independently, so a close match between two images points to the source material rather than a technical fault.
Another user, @solotizzy, said older Nollywood celebrities should be willing to admit directly when they have copied a concept rather than attributing it to AI.
Anita Joseph has faced public criticism in the past week on other matters as well. She was recently criticized online for congratulating fellow actress May Edochie on the launch of her cosmetics line, Qm Beauty Cosmetics, on Amazon, after a social media user described the achievement as minor. Anita Joseph responded to the criticism in defense of May Edochie.
As of the time of reporting, neither Anita Joseph nor Caramel Plug has issued any further statement on the matter.
