The Nigerian Army on Tuesday denied being in possession of the certificate of the Presidential candidate of opposition All Progressives Congress (APC),General Muhammadu Buhari.
The Army in a statement, which may have significant implications to the 2015 presidential elections, said neither the original copy, Certified True Copy (CTC) nor statement of result of Buhari’s WASC results is in his personal file.
The position of the Army was made public by Director of Army Public Relations, Brig. General Olajide Olaleye while addressing journalists in Abuja.
olajide said, “I will begin with the Major General Muhammadu Buhari certificate controversy. .. that the Nigerian Army holds the retired senior officer in very high esteem and respect and would not be a party to any controversy surrounding his eligibility for any political office. Suffice to state that Major General Buhari rose steadily to the enviable rank of Major General before becoming the Head of State of our dear country in December 1983.
“The media hype on retired Major General Muhammadu Buhari’s credentials as well as the numerous requests made by individuals and corporate bodies to the Nigerian Army on this issue have necessitated that we provide the facts as contained in the retired senior officer’s service record. Records available indicate that Major General M Buhari applied to join the military as a Form Six student of the Provincial Secondary School, Katsina on October 18, 1961.
The spokesman said “His application was duly endorsed by the Principal of the school, who also wrote a report on him and recommended him to be suitable for military commission. It is a practice in the NA that before candidates are shortlisted for commissioning into the officers’ cadre of the Service, the Selection Board verifies the original copies of credentials that are presented. However, there is no available record to show that this process was followed in the 1960s.
“Nevertheless, the entry made on the NA Form 199A at the point of documentation after commission as an officer indicated that the former head of state obtained the West African School Certificate (WASC) in 1961 with credits in relevant subjects: English Language, Geography, History, Health Science, Hausa and a pass in English Literature. However, neither the original copy, Certified True Copy (CTC) nor statement of result of Major General Muhammadu Buhari’s WASC result is in his personal file.
He expressed hope that “this explanation will put to rest the raging controversy surrounding the secondary school credentials of Major General Mohammed Buhari as it affects the Nigerian Army.”
The Rainbow learnt that failure to satisfactorily address this certificate issue, which he sore on oath to have may spring forth legal war as to Buhari’s qualification to contest for the exalted office of the presidency.
it was also learnt that the retired general will also address the media on Wednesday in Kano, on the vexed issue of his WASC certificate.
