Tinubu to INEC, unknown persons stole my academic certificates

The All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has again been confronted by the ghost of his past academic claims.

From all indication, the haunting spirit of scrutiny on his academic attainments appears not to have been fully exorcised.

Once again, the former Lagos State governor is confronted with allegations of certificate forgery and bogus claims of schools attended.

Tinubu, in a sworn affidavit submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), in support of his nomination form for the office of the president, reportedly told the election umpire that “unknown persons” stole his academic certificates.

According to him, he went on self-exile from October 1994 to October 1998, “when I returned and discovered that my property including all the documents relating to my qualification and my certificates in respect of paragraph 3, above, were looted by unknown persons.”

Tinubu was reputed as one of the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) chieftains who fled the country in the mid-nineties, under the regime of the late General Sani Abacha, who had clamped down on democracy activists and civil society groups, opposed to his dictatorship.

Daily Trust reports that while skipping information about his primary and secondary school education, the ‘Governor-General’ of Lagos State still maintained he attended University of Chicago between 1972 and 1976, where he obtained BSc in Economics.

READ: Tinubu’s presidency: Affliction must not rise a second time

He also said he had BSc in Business and Administration, as well as certificate in Public Account.

Historians of Tinubu’s political sojourn, however, said his latest claims contradict his previous submissions to INEC, especially in 1999, when he ran and won the Lagos State governorship election.

He had said then that he attended St Paul Children’s School, Aroloya, Home School, Ibadan, between 1958 and 1964; while his secondary education was at Government College Ibadan (GCI), between 1965 and 1968.

According to him, from Ibadan, he proceeded to Richard Daley College, Chicago, from 1969 to 1971.

He finally said he attended both Chicago State University and the University of Chicago.

All the submissions were, however, challenged by Nigeria’s foremost human rights lawyer, Late Chief Gani Fawehinmi, who argued the matter up to the Supreme Court, which dismissed the case on technical grounds.

Notwithstanding, the court had also made a significant proclamation to the effect that though Tinubu as a sitting governor could not be prosecuted, owing to the immunity clause in the Constitution, his actions were however open to investigation.