A socio-political pressure group, the Leadership and Accountability Initiative, has petitioned the Secretary of Nigeria Military Board and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in a reaction to the certificate scandal of the All Progressive Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (Retd).
The petition was contained in a letter signed by the Executive Coordinator, Mr. Henry Shield, title: ‘Application for Information,’ a copy obtained by ThisDay.
The group demanded that the public should be availed with the credentials of the APC candidate as claimed in the sworn affidavit.
The executive coordinator stated that the group’s application was in accordance with Sections 1 and 7 of the Freedom of Information (FoI) Act, adding that the claims by the former head of state were spurious and lack merit.
Shield in the petition to INEC, wanted to know “if Buhari submitted any academic certificate(s) when he contested the 2003, 2007 and 2011 presidential elections? Has Buhari submitted any academic certificate(s) in respect of the upcoming February 14, presidential election? Does an affidavit in lieu of academic certificates not require a candidate to list their academic qualifications and certificates obtained? Did Buhari submit a birth certificate or a sworn affidavit of age declaration in respect of the upcoming February 14 election?”
The petition dated January 6, further read: “Buhari served in the Nigerian Army and rose to the rank of a Major-General. He is presently aspiring for the Office of the President on the platform of the APC. Section 131 (d) of the 1999 Constitution however states that an aspirant for that office must possess a minimum of a school certificate. In-line with this, Buhari swore to an affidavit at the High Court of Justice, FCT, Abuja on November 24, 2014 claiming that ‘All my academic documents as filed in my presidential form, ‘President APC/001/2015’ are currently with the Secretary Military Board as at the time of this affidavit.”
The group in the letter, which was also copied to the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) and Chief of Army Staff (COAS), also requested the Nigeria Military Board to respond quickly on the subject matter, reiterating that the public would like to know the authenticity of Buhari’s credentials.
“Standing on the strength of Sections 1 and 7 of the FoI Act, we wish to most respectfully apply for the information pertaining to the Academic Records of Buhari as claimed in his affidavit,” the group requested.
Meanwhile, Abuja residents under the banner of Original Inhabitants Development Association of Abuja (OIDA) have directed the the two main presidential candidates in February election, President Goodluck Jonathan of the Peoples Democratic Party and Buhari of the APC to campaign in their villages or lose their votes.
The directive was given at the weekend by the President of OIDA, Pastor Danladi Jeji during the third FCT Heritage Day celebration and launching of N200 million education endowment funds of the nine indigenous tribes of the FCT held in Kuje town.
Jeji asserted that failure to factor the indigenous villages in their campaign, will see the presidential candidates lose the critical “one-quarter of the votes cast at the election in each of at least two-thirds of all the states in the federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja” as stated in Section 134(b) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
“As the nation embarks on the 2015 general election, we call on all presidential candidates, especially of the two biggest political parties, APC and PDP to proceed from Abuja city centre to our indigenous towns like Abaji, Kuje, Bwari, Karu, Zuba etc to campaign vigorously for votes. Unless the two top contenders, Jonathan and Buhari step into our indigenous communities to tell us what their governments will do for us, we shall have no choice than to cast our votes elsewhere, thereby depriving them of the critical one-quarter or 25 per cent of the votes needed in the FCT to guarantee their victory,” he said.
