General Buhari To Speak About Certificate Controversy Today

However, the APC in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, urged the Peoples Democratic Party not to compromise the army in the name of giving President Goodluck Jonathan an unfair advantage ahead of the February 14 presidential poll.

The APC said compromising the army could backfire. It said the military, as a symbol of national unity, must beware of those seeking to use it to achieve selfish and divisive ends.

The party said it found it funny that the army spokesman had told The PUNCH in a publication on January 4, 2015 that it had the certificates of all serving and retired officers only to deny having Buhari’s credentials two weeks later.

It said, ‘‘In an interview with The Punch on January 4, 2015, Brig.-Gen. Olaleye said, ‘Every serving and retired Army officer has at least a copy of his certificates and credentials kept in the Nigerian Army while that same serving and retired officer has copies of those same certificates and credentials’

‘‘Is Brig.-Gen. Olaleye now saying that he did not make that statement? If he did, what has happened between then and now to make him to recant? It will be interesting to know what has transpired between then and now.”

The APC added, ‘’Is he (Olaleye) now saying that all those who were commissioned into the officer cadres in the 1960s did not have their certificates verified? Does this not confirm what we said that in trying to destroy Maj. Gen. Buhari, the PDP and the Jonathan administration will end up destroying the army as an institution? Or is it only Maj. Gen. Buhari that was commissioned into the army in the 1960s.”

The APC argued that even if the army did not have Buhari’s certificates, he (Buhari) “is still very qualified to run for the country’s highest office, as stipulated by the 1999 Constitution.”

The party said since Olaleye had now confirmed that the form Buhari filed contained his Secondary School Certificate results, there was no scintilla of doubt about his qualification to run for President as stipulated by the constitution.

It added, ‘‘We know that the PDP and the Jonathan administration have constituted themselves into a court of law and will like nothing more than the disqualification of our candidate so they that will face no challenge in next month’s election.’’

Also, the Director, Media and Information Management Directorate of Buhari Support Organisation, Chidia Maduekwe, said the issue of Buhari’s certificate was inconsequential.

He said, “INEC has said it and I am saying it again, if anybody has doubts about the general’s credentials, the person should go to court.

“What the constitution says is that a person seeking for the office of President should be educated up to the level of school certificate and there is evidence that the general was in school up till form six, his school principal attested to this, he joined the army and rose to the peak.”