Yemi Obafemi
Former Vice President and 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has described the resignation of the Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Uche Nnaji, as an attempt to whitewash yet another scandal that exposes what he called the “forgery-ridden character” of the Bola Tinubu administration.
Nnaji tendered his resignation on Tuesday following revelations by the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) that it did not issue the Bachelor of Science degree certificate in his possession.
The institution stated that the former minister did not complete his studies at the university and was never awarded a certificate.
In his resignation statement, Nnaji said the decision to step down was made to protect the integrity of the ministry and allow due process to take its course.
“Over the past week, an orchestrated campaign of falsehood, politically motivated and malicious attacks have been waged against my person, integrity, and office,” he said.
“My decision to step aside is a personal choice not an admission of guilt, but a principled decision to respect the sanctity of due process and to preserve the integrity of judicial proceedings currently before the court.”
However, Atiku in a statement on Wednesday faulted the manner in which the matter was handled, accusing the Tinubu administration of shielding officials involved in acts of forgery and deceit.
“What should ordinarily be a matter of national shame is now being disguised as a ‘voluntary resignation’ an attempt to whitewash yet another scandal that typifies the forgery-ridden character of this government,” Atiku said.
“Uche Nnaji should not have been allowed the courtesy of resignation. He should have been summarily dismissed and prosecuted for deceit and falsification.”
The former Vice President also criticized the Department of State Services (DSS) for what he termed a failure of due diligence during the screening of Nnaji, noting that the same agency had disqualified former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir el-Rufai, over alleged security concerns.
Atiku alleged that the scandal reflects a deeper moral crisis within the Tinubu administration, which he said is headed by a man whose own academic and identity records remain controversial.
“The man who occupies the office of President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has for decades been enmeshed in controversies surrounding his identity, age, and academic records. When a man of questionable identity leads a country, deception becomes the standard of governance,” he stated.
He called for an independent and transparent investigation into the academic and professional credentials of all members of the Federal Executive Council, beginning with President Tinubu himself.
“Until this cleansing is done, Nigeria will continue to sink deeper into moral decay, economic ruin, and global embarrassment. The time has come to rescue our country from the grip of deceit and restore integrity to public life,” he warned.
