Pressure is mounting on President Bola Tinubu to sack the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Uche Nnaji from his cabinet.
This comes amid allegations of certificate forgery against the minister, with both the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, UNN, and the National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, disowning his degree and discharge certificates, respectively.
Also yesterday, court documents emerged where Nnaji admitted that the UNN did not issue him the degree certificate in circulation.
An Abuja Federal High Court has also rejected a bid by the Minister to stop the UNN from releasing his academic records.
An application for interim injunction filed by the minister's lawyer asked the court to restrain the respondents from acting on a request for release of his academic records.
However, Justice Hausa Yilwa turned down the application.
Two prominent Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) and Transparency International Nigeria, are now leading the call that Nnaji should resign or be sacked by President Tinubu.
Leader of the CSOs, Comrade Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, said that politicians do not need to acquire degrees by hook or by crook, as they can hold any position with a school certificate, as provided for in the constitution.
Rafsanjani observed that the minister has not resigned because he is close to the president.
He, however, insisted that leaders must lead by example.
“Well, I think the issue is that if you lie in your certificate, whether it is a degree or not, whether it is an asset declaration or not, I think the only thing is that if you lie and it is exposed, you need simply to resign because you cannot be promoting lies and fraud.
“What leadership are you providing? What are you presiding over if you are found to be involved in a fraudulent or lying situation?
“Now, the onus is on the man, now that the matter is public, to resign and apologise to the nation quickly. Secondly, the president cannot sit down and watch people who clearly promote lies, deception, manipulation, and fraud in the name of party or solidarity.
“There are several ministers, or rather several public officials, who are facing serious integrity challenges because of their past and what they have done.
“Some have been accused of corruption. Some have been charged with similar certificate scandals. Others have been accused of many things.
“If you want to provide quality leadership and want citizens to accept, follow, and respect you, you cannot have people with damaged reputations and integrity problems,” he told Leadership Newspaper.
Similarly, Ademola Adaranijo, a professor of law, called on the federal government to immediately suspend the minister from office.
He said such action would clear the way for a thorough and transparent investigation into the forgery allegations.
Prof Adaranijo stated that this step is crucial to maintaining public trust and demonstrating a zero-tolerance policy towards fraud by the government.
Meanwhile, amid the raging controversy, Mr Peter Obi, Labour Party former presidential candidate, has demanded stern punishment for politicians with forged academic certificates.
Obi made the demand in a post on his verified X handle on Monday.
Although he did not mention Nnaji, Obi stressed the need to end the era where forgery and deceit are rewarded with power, adding that true leadership must begin with truth.
He lamented that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, makes little or no effort to scrutinize certificates before the elections.
"How do you tell young Nigerians to be honest and upright when those they are supposed to emulate are the least to be emulated because they are criminals and dishonest?
"Certificate forgery is a serious criminal offence in all countries of the world. It is one of the most corrupt practices heavily punished.
"We are now preparing for the 2027 general elections. INEC has enough time to investigate past complaints about various forms of forgery and false claims.
"Our Electoral amendments must include that anyone intending to contest for any public office, whether an incumbent or a new candidate, must submit all academic certificates to the electoral body immediately after party primaries, at least six months before the election.
"We must deal with certificate forgery holistically with the seriousness and level of criminality it deserves. Criminal offences should not be dismissed as a mere procedural matter. We must end the era where forgery and deceit are rewarded with power. True leadership must begin with truth," he wrote.
NATIONAL POST reports that Nnaji is yet to react to the viral news on the alleged certificate forgery.
