The Presidency has described the controversy trailing President Muhammadu Buhari’s certificate as an issue that never existed in the first place.
Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, stated this during his appearance on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics.
He said, “For, us the issue is dead, and we will not contend with anybody on it because in the first place there is no issue.”
“Even in 2015, there was no issue. Anybody that wants to continue to beat a dead horse is welcome to it.”
Adesina’s comments come hours after the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) condemned the attestation and confirmation of result issued to President Muhammadu Buhari by the West Africa Examination Council (WAEC).
The PDP described the certificate as fake and of no effect, stressing that attestations were only issued in the case of missing or destroyed certificate according to WAEC rules, among other claims.
Adesina, however, said the party was only trying to distract Nigerians, stressing that the concerns raised by the PDP were a mere “storm in a teacup”.
“it is coming from a party that has run out of ideas. It has nothing to offer Nigerians and if they don’t hang what they are saying around the President, they have nothing to say,” he added.
The presidential aide insisted that if millions of people voted for President Buhari in the build-up to the 2015 general elections, when the certificate controversy started, more would vote for him in 2019.
“Some people are so contentious that if they find nobody to contend with, they will begin to contend with themselves,” he said.
“Some people will just not be satisfied with anything. For those who believe, no evidence is needed and for those who don’t believe, you can’t convince them.”
The Presidency and the PDP disagreed two days after WAEC Registrar, Dr Iyi Uwadiae, led some officials of the examination body to the Presidential Villa where he presented the document to the President.
