Former VP Atiku Abubakar Wants Obi, Kwankwanso, and Others to Support His Fight Against President Bola Tinubu’s Certificate Validity Problem
Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the February 25th election, has issued a call to action for fellow presidential candidates to join him in his legal challenge against President Bola Tinubu, specifically concerning the accusation of certificate forgery against the president. Atiku made this appeal during a press conference held on Thursday in Abuja.
He specifically reached out to Peter Obi of the Labour Party, who is also pursuing a legal case at the Supreme Court to be declared the winner of the presidential election, and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria People Party (NNPP), urging them to join his cause.
Atiku emphasized that his fight isn’t solely for his own benefit but is centered on upholding the country’s constitution, from which Nigerian leaders should derive their legitimacy. He asserted his determination to persist until the Supreme Court delivers its final judgment.
At the press conference, Atiku was accompanied by prominent figures such as the former National Chairman of the PDP, Iyorchia Ayu, former Senate President Bukola Saraki, Segun Sowunmi, and other key members of the party.
Atiku had previously requested documents to support his claim of certificate forgery against Mr. Tinubu, a charge that had been dismissed by the Presidential Election Petition Court in the lawsuit filed by the PDP candidate challenging Mr. Tinubu’s election under the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Despite the court’s ruling, Atiku initiated legal proceedings in the United States to obtain official documents that could substantiate his claims and possibly include them in his appeal to Nigeria’s Supreme Court. Notably, a U.S. court had recently ordered Chicago State University to release relevant records within 48 hours.
The university subsequently provided Atiku’s legal team with a collection of documents related to Mr. Tinubu’s education at the institution. These documents included redacted certificates issued to other individuals around the same time as Mr. Tinubu’s graduation in 1979, as well as his admission records. Furthermore, a letter dated June 27, 2022, confirmed Mr. Tinubu’s enrollment at the university from August 1977 to June 1979, majoring in accounting, and stated that he was awarded a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with Honors on June 22, 1979.
Caleb Westberg, the CSU Registrar, also provided additional details in a deposition made to the court regarding the documents released to Mr. Atiku’s legal team.