Victor Ezeja
Following the deposition of President Bola Tinubu’s academic records by the Chicago State University (CSU), former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who instituted the court proceedings in the United States court, on Thursday asserted that the scandal emanating therefrom affects every Nigerian.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelHe therefore called on other presidential candidates in the 2023 general election to join him in his legal battle against Tinubu, particularly over the certificate forgery allegation against the President, stressing that “the ground rules for legitimate governance in our country need to be upheld, and the reputation of our country is at stake. That affects everyone, Nigerians everywhere”.
The release of the documents, which have gone viral online, inflamed controversies touching on Tinubu’s education at CSU, the true identity of the owner of the CSU degree he parades, to the allegation of the forgery of the certificate he submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
READ ALSO: Chicago University Grants Atiku Access To Tinubu’s Academic Records
The CSU registrar, Mr. Caleb Westberg, on Tuesday, told a court-ordered deposition in Illinois that even though President Bola Ahmed Tinubu graduated from the university, it did not issue the CSU diploma certificate Tinubu submitted to INEC for the 2023 presidential run.
Prime Business Africa recalls that the late human rights lawyer, Gani Fawehinmi (SAN) had on October 7, 1999, filed an order at the Federal High Court, Lagos to compel security operatives to investigate criminal allegations which he made against the then governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu. This was in response to Tinubu’s claim of loss of certificates in his filings with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in 1999 and 2003 when he ran for governor of Lagos State.
The Federal High Court in its judgement however ruled that Tinubu as then sitting governor could not be tried as he enjoyed immunity from prosecution. Upon appeal at the appellate court, the judgement of the lower court was upheld. Fawehinmi then headed to the Supreme Court and the apex court ruled that though Tinubu enjoyed immunity from prosecution, he could be investigated by the police over the allegation and tried after his tenure.
Atiku, who addressed a world press conference over revelations emanating from far-away United States surrounding Tinubu, stated that Fawehinmi inspired him on this path of discovery and that the late human rights lawyer “can truly rest in peace in the assurance that what he started about 23 years ago has come to fruition,” adding that “Gani’s vindication today gives credence to the saying that no matter how fast a lie runs, the truth will someday overtake it”.
The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 election said, “It should not take months or, indeed, decades, for the institutions concerned to be able to do their work in establishing the credibility of any certificates presented by candidates for public office”.
He categorically called on the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, who is also at the Supreme Court fighting to be declared winner of the presidential election, and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria People Party (NNPP) to join him in the campaign to instill morality in the government of Nigeria.
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