More Revelations as Buhari Opens Defence of Presidential Election Victory

Revelations have continued to emerge at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal (PEPT), as witnesses called by President Muhammadu Buhari in defence of his victory continued to make startling revelations on the controversial issue of his academic qualification to contest the February 23 presidential election.

Buhari's academic qualification has since 2015 been enmeshed in one controversy or the other.

Although he insisted he possess the requisite academic qualification for the presidential election and that his certificates were with the Nigerian Army, the Army have since dismissed the claim, stressing that Buhari's personal file with them does not contain any of the certificates he claimed to have possessed.

The first revelation was made by Maj. Gen. Paul Tafa (rtd), who claimed to have been enlisted in the Nigerian Army with President Buhari on April 16, 1962.

He listed some of their colleagues to include Brigadier Ola Oni, Major General Duro Ajayi, Major General Shehu Yar'Adua, and  Brig. Gen. Abudullahi Saleh, anong others-- all retired.

However under cross examination,  Tafa, told the  tribunal that the Nigerian Army never asked Buhari and others, including himself to surrender their certificate to the army in 1962, for whatever reason. 

He made the revelation during cross examination by counsel to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Yunus Usman (SAN).

Usman had asked: "when you were enlisted into the army in 1962 you were asked to submit your certificate to the Nigerian Army?

Responding, Tarfa  said: "There was nothing of such."

Tafa however confirmed that English was the official language of communication at the time and that they also wrote their examinations in English language.

Under cross examination by Atiku and PDP's lead counsel, Dr. Levy Uzoukwu, SAN, the first defence witness said that President Buhari, being the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has all military formations under him.

Another witness and current Chief of Staff to President Buhari, Alhaji Abba Kyari, who claimed to have known Buhari for nearly 40 years, told the tribunal that the president possessed requisite qualification to contest the February 23 presidential election.

According to him, President Buhari has credit in five subjects including English Language, in his West African School Certificate Examination(WASCE), conducted by Cambridge University.

But under cross examination by Uzoukwu, Kyari told the tribunal that he personally received and signed for Buhari's Cambridge University WASC Certificate on July 18, 2019.

The witness further admitted that Buhari, in his curriculum vitae (CV)  listed the schools he attended but did not include any of the certificates obtained.

He also admitted not being Buhari's classmate at any time and never a member of the army, adding that he was not in possession of any of Buhari's certificates.

Further cross-examined by Atiku's counsel, Kyari admitted that the diploma certificate in Strategic Studies he claimed Buhari possessed in his witness statement was not listed in Buhari's CV.

While he told the tribunal that Atiku was a Cameroonian by birth, he however admitted he never knew nor met Atiku's father and grand father.

Another witness, Sule Mai'Adua, a retired civil servant, admitted that he attended the same secondary school with Buhari and that he took photographs with him while they were in class six.

He also told the tribunal that he wrote WASC examination in 1961 with Buhari and that Buhari has two certifcate.

When asked to read the army's statement that Buhari's certifcate was not in his personal file with the military, the witness said he was never in the army and did not know the position of the army, but insisted that Buhari has two certificates.

Earlier, Buhari through his lead counsel, Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, had tendered series of documents, including newspaper publication,s, receipts and certified true copies of WASC certificate, confidential result sheet from Provincial Secondary School and a copy of Buhari's CV duly signed by him as exhibits.

Although, both INEC and All Progressives Congress (APC) did not object to the admissibility of the documents, Atiku and PDP registered their opposition to the admissibility of the documents, but reserved reasons to the objection till the final address stage.

According to them the documents were not pleaded and listed as documents to be tendered, adding that it was shocking to know that the documents were only filed today, July 30, 2019.

Atiku and PDP, in their petition, are challenging the eligibility of President Buhari for the 2019 presidential election on grounds of non-possession of requisite academic qualification, election malpractices among others.