No primary, no secondary… but a BSc? Atiku asks Tinubu how
By Ishaya Ibrahim
The African Democratic Congress presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar is demanding answers from President Bola Tinubu over blank primary and secondary school entries in his 2027 nomination form, wondering how a university degree appears without the basics.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Saturday published Tinubu’s nomination documents for the 2027 presidential election showing no entries for primary and secondary school qualifications.
The form list only Tinubu’s Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Chicago State University (CSU), obtained in 1979, and his National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) discharge certificate. The sections on the summary page designated for primary and secondary school details were left blank. In a swift reaction during an event on Sunday, Atiku asked how?
He said: “What kind of country is this? The spaces for primary and secondary education on Tinubu’s nomination form are blank, yet a university degree is listed. How is that possible?”
In Atiku’s nomination form, he listed a First School Leaving Certificate from 1954, a West Africa School Certificate from 1961, and a Master of Arts in International Relations from Anglia Ruskin University obtained in 2020.
For the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate Peter Obi, he listed St. Augustine’s Primary School, Anambra (1973), Christ the King College, where he obtained WASC in 1978, and a BA in Philosophy from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, in 1984.
For Senior Advocate of Nigeria Mumini Jimoh, a secondary school certificate is a basic constitutional requirement for presidential candidates, but suggested the blank fields were most likely an administrative error, per Daily Trust report.
Also, Mohammed Abeni, SAN said the omission “gives room for suspicion, especially for a president that has been dogged by academic controversies.”
Constitutional lawyer Danjuma John cited Section 318(1) of the 1999 Constitution, which defines “School Certificate or its equivalent” to include SSCE/WAEC, a Grade II Teacher’s Certificate, or a Primary Six Certificate combined with relevant work experience.
However, SAN Taiye Oniyide argued the omission has no legal consequence. “The university qualification uploaded is even higher than secondary school,” he said, adding that any remaining concerns are moral rather than constitutional.
