The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, on Tuesday declared that the “fretting and jittering in the Presidency” whenever the issue of President Muhammadu Buhari’s academic certificate was mentioned was an indication that “Mr. President is morally burdened and ostensibly has something to hide.”
PDP made the remark while responding to a statement credited to the Presidency alleging that those raising the certificate issue are sowing seeds of discord.
The opposition party stated that Buhari’s handlers should “do the needful by placing the certificate in public domain instead of confronting and threatening Nigerians for demanding that Mr. President shows his certificate.”
In a statement by its spokesperson, Kola Ologbondiyan, the opposition party said, “The Buhari Presidency should know that their threats and confrontation cannot take away the fact that their principal’s certificate issue requires a personal responsibility and Mr. President cannot wish away this responsibility as he had always done on official matters.
“If Mr. President has nothing to hide, he should end the confrontations by his presidency and show integrity by writing the military authorities to make public the said certificate.
“In failing to do so, Mr. President is opening himself to public opprobrium particularly as millions of Nigerian youths see such as grossly undesirable of a leader, expected to set examples.
“Moreover, President Buhari should know that Nigerians are aware that he is not the only retired military officer to aspire for elective office in the country and none of them brought the claims of their certificates being held by the military.
“We, therefore, hold that Mr. President must show Nigerians his claimed school certificate upon which his nomination as a candidate is based. If he does not have this credential, he should make such declaration and stop the nebulous claim that his credentials are with the military.”
