2027: Constitution does not compel Tinubu to submit primary, secondary certificates — SAN

Stanley Ihedigbo

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and constitutional lawyer, Dr. Monday Ubani, has stated that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was under no constitutional obligation to submit his primary and secondary school certificates to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), maintaining that while the omission may raise concerns about transparency, it does not constitute a legal violation.

Ubani made the clarification on Wednesday during an interview on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, following renewed public debate over President Tinubu’s educational credentials after former Kogi West Senator, Dino Melaye, alleged that the President did not include his primary and secondary school certificates among the nomination documents submitted to INEC for the 2027 presidential election.

The controversy resurfaced after INEC published the credentials submitted by presidential candidates, prompting questions over whether the Constitution requires aspirants to provide primary and secondary school certificates or whether possession of a university degree is sufficient to satisfy the educational qualification for the office of President.

Addressing the issue, Ubani stressed that the matter should be interpreted strictly within the provisions of the Constitution and existing judicial precedents rather than public opinion.

“It is about the law, not about maybe sentiment or bias, which I see flying about,” he said.

The senior lawyer explained that Section 131 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) requires a presidential candidate to demonstrate that he or she has been educated up to school certificate level or its equivalent, but does not expressly mandate the submission of primary or secondary school certificates.

“The Constitution says that whosoever will run for the office of the president must possess, show that he has attained the level up to school certificate level,” Ubani stated.

According to him, Nigerian courts have already interpreted the constitutional provision, making it clear that candidates are not legally compelled to physically produce school certificates as proof of qualification.

“There’s no legal compulsion that he must disclose his certificate or he must show it. I’ll say that it’s only a moral issue and it has nothing to do with legal compulsion,” he said.

Ubani argued that although the omission of lower educational certificates may generate public concerns about openness and accountability, it does not invalidate a candidate’s nomination under the Constitution.

He noted that judicial interpretations have consistently distinguished between constitutional requirements and what may be considered desirable from the standpoint of transparency.

“There’s no constitutional compulsion to show a certificate and there is a judicial pronouncement to that effect that the Constitution does not require the production of certificates. It’s just for you to show that you have been educated up to that level,” he added.

The constitutional lawyer further explained that where a candidate submits a recognised university degree, the law presumes that the individual must have completed the lower stages of education unless credible evidence is presented to rebut that presumption.

“If somebody has a degree, the presumption is that he must have passed through primary school, secondary school, and university. So it is for you now to rebut it,” he stated.

While defending the legal position, Ubani acknowledged that public office seekers should demonstrate a high level of transparency by voluntarily providing all relevant educational credentials.

“I agree that ordinarily, whoever is submitting his credentials should have shown evidence of his primary school certificate and should have also shown evidence of his secondary school certificate. These are moral issues. These are issues of transparency,” he said.

Speaking on INEC’s role in the process, Ubani maintained that the electoral commission acts within the law by merely publishing candidates’ documents for public scrutiny and is not empowered to authenticate or verify their contents.

“There is no provision in the Act that gives INEC the supervisory role of authenticating and qualifying or disqualifying a candidate. The law has now provided a remedy for anyone who feels that whatever information that a candidate has given to INEC is false,” he explained.

He added that INEC’s responsibility ends with making the documents available to the public, while any person challenging the authenticity of a candidate’s credentials must seek legal redress through the courts.

Ubani also commented on concerns over discrepancies in the names appearing on the educational documents of Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi after questions were raised about variations across his WAEC, University of Nigeria and National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) records.

According to him, differences in names do not automatically establish wrongdoing but require proper legal documentation explaining the changes.

“It’s an issue now. Peter Obi has to give a reason why the change and all that. It’s an issue. There must be a public document to that effect,” he said.

In previous litigation concerning allegations of certificate forgery against President Tinubu following the 2023 presidential election, Ubani maintained that the Supreme Court did not make a substantive determination on the allegation itself.

“I don’t think there was any judgment on merit at that time,” he stated, explaining that procedural issues prevented the apex court from delivering a definitive ruling on the claims.

The senior advocate further observed that disputes relating to educational qualifications are pre-election matters that must be instituted within the timeframe stipulated by law after INEC publishes candidates’ particulars.

“If you are challenging the certificate issue, this is the right time for you to do it within 14 days after the publication. If you fail to do it now under the new Act, I don’t think you can bring it up as a post-qualification issue,” Ubani said.

His remarks come amid heightened political scrutiny of candidates’ credentials ahead of the 2027 general election, with legal experts and political stakeholders continuing to debate the constitutional requirements for eligibility and the standards of transparency expected of those seeking Nigeria’s highest office.