Army officially denies being in possession of Buhari's certificate

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This was disclosed today, January 20, by the Director, Army Public Relations, Olaleye Lajide during a press conference in Abuja.

The Nigerian Army has once again denied being in possession of the academic credentials of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari.

This was disclosed today, January 20, by the Director, Army Public Relations, Olaleye Lajide during a press conference in Abuja.

However, an official statement has been released to declare the army’s final stance on the matter. It reads:

Gentlemen of the Press, I am pleased to welcome everyone back from the Christmas and the 2015 New Year festivities. On behalf of the Chief of Army Staff, officers and soldiers of the Nigerian Army, I wish you all a happy and more fulfilling 2015. Since our last media briefing on 31 December, 2014, some issues relating to the Nigerian Army have occurred and this briefing is holding specifically to address them.

I will begin with the Major General Muhammadu Buhari certificate controversy.

Gentlemen, let me state clearly 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 18 Oct 61. 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. Neither the original copy, Certified True Copy (CTC) nor statement of result of Major General M Buhari's WASC result is in his personal file.

I hope 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.