Tinubu Not Qualified to Contest 2027 Election, Says ADC

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has argued that President Bola Tinubu is not qualified to contest the 2027 presidential election, citing his alleged failure to present his primary and secondary school certificates to the public.

Tinubu, in the form he submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for next year’s election, reportedly left blank the sections designated for his primary and secondary school education, raising concerns among some Nigerians, particularly members of the opposition.

A lawyer and ADC chieftain, Kalu Kalu, alleged that the President committed forgery by previously presenting certificates he did not possess, an act he claimed automatically disqualifies him from contesting for the nation’s highest office. He cited Section 137(1)(j) of the 1999 Constitution, which states that a person is not qualified to run for the office of President if they have presented a forged certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

He alleged that the primary and secondary schools Tinubu claimed to have attended either did not exist at the time or were falsely represented. Kalu further claimed that although Tinubu presented those certificates during the 2023 election, the due diligence carried out by the ADC’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, who was the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate in the last general election, had prompted the President to remain silent about his primary and secondary school education in his latest submission to INEC.

Kalu also questioned the authenticity of President Tinubu’s Chicago State University certificate, saying it had been subjected to scrutiny in a United States court.

The ADC stalwart said: “Atiku Abubakar went for the discovery of the academic records of Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the US court directed Chicago State University to release those academic records of Bola Ahmed Tinubu. And when they were released, it was found that Bola Ahmed Tinubu made a very dangerous false entry that he attended Government College, Lagos and graduated in 1970, whereas Government College, Lagos, was not even in existence in 1970; it was established in 1974. That’s one.

Speaking on whether the matter could be relitigated, Kalu said: “The challenge is that the Supreme Court’s position on pre-election matters is that only an aspirant can challenge another aspirant in the race. Now Tinubu has emerged, and nobody from the APC is challenging him. But the issue now is Section 29 of the Electoral Act. Is the Electoral Act superior to the Constitution? The answer is no. If the Constitution says, under Section 137(1)(j), that you are not qualified to contest an election if you have presented a forged certificate to INEC.