Valentine Obienyem, the Media Aide of the Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi has defended his principal’s decision not to present his degree results due to its poor grades, saying that educational qualification is not a requisite to become the president of the country.
INEC on Tuesday published the list of candidates for the 2023 general elections and their qualifications, but without Obi’s degree qualifications.
Criticisms have since trailed it with many questioning the intellectual capacity of the former Anambra state governor in his ambition to become the president of the country.
In a statement, Obienyem said that the possession of paper qualifications is not necessary as it cannot be used to measure wisdom and intelligence.
The statement reads in part, “It would have just required publishing Mr. Peter Obi’s degree result to stop the perennial debate about the class of degree he came out with.
“Each time I mentioned it to him, Obi would restrain me from publishing. His stand is clear: ‘Val, to me, education is the progressive discovery of our ignorance. We learn every day. The possession of paper qualification is not, and cannot become the measure of wisdom and intelligence.
Nigerians have since expressed concern about whether a candidate who lacks sound tertiary education is capable of leading the country at this time. This combines with previously growing skepticism of Obi’s purported intellectual rigor as the public grew tired of his evasiveness and inability to provide direct answers highlighting his exact plans to tackle Nigeria’s challenges when subjected to scrutiny by journalists.