The former Vice President of Nigeria and candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 presidential election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has become enmeshed in a WAEC certificate scandal barely a week after he held a world press conference accusing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of submitting a forged Chicago State University certificate to INEC despite the repeated insistence of Chicago State University that President Bola Tinubu graduated from the University.
Recently it emerged that the General Certificate of Education (GCE) from WAEC that Atiku Abubakar submitted to INEC on 17th June, 2022 clearly bore the name of SIDDIQ ABUBAKAR instead of Atiku Abubakar, which was the name he has long been associated with for decades.
Following the revelation, many Nigerians took to the social media asking the PDP candidate to come clean on the real owner of the certificate. In apparent response to the growing pressure, one of Atiku’s media aide, Mr. Dele Momodu stated that Atiku Abubakar has explained how the discrepancy in the name arose and what the former Vice President did to correct it.
According to Dele Momodu, Atiku Abubakar explained that he actually used Sadiq (different from Siddiq that was written on the certificate) to sit for the WAEC GCE exams and that after passing his exams he went to swear an affidavit to say he is the same person as Atiku Abubakar.
Dele Momodu wrote on his X handle:
“The APC busybodies have been bombarding me with allegations of forgery against my Principal, ALHAJI ATIKU ABUBAKAR (GCON), which I immediately forwarded to him and here is his copious response: ‘Yes I used Sadiq Abubakar to sit for my WAEC and after passing my exams I went to swear an affidavit to say I am the same person as ATIKU Abubakar. I went to ABU as Atiku Abuakar and passed my Exams as Atiku Abubakar. Interviewed as Atiku Abubakar by the Federal Civil Service Commission and hired into the Customs Service as Atiku Abubakar. So where is forgery there?’ – ATIKU ABUBAKAR”
The explanation of Atiku Abubakar has raised more questions and puzzles. First, the certificate he submitted to INEC clearly bears the name Siddiq while in his explanation, he mentioned Sadiq instead. Secondly, it is very puzzling why Atiku Abubakar who was not previously known to bear the name Siddiq or Sadiq would all of a sudden register for GCE exam with the name Siddiq Abubakar and then immediately after passing his exams go through the stress of swearing a court affidavit to show that the result belongs to Atiku Abubakar.
This has made many Nigerians to believe Atiku Abubakar may have used another student’s GCE result to gain admission into the Kano School of Hygiene. It is expected that Mr. Atiku Abubakar, who is trying profusely to link President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to forgery of a certificate his school duly affirmed he earned in flying colours, will provide further answers to the posers his latest explanation have raised.