The Minister of Science and Know-how, Uche Nnaji, has admitted that the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), by no means issued him a level certificates.
This admission validates the findings of a painstaking two-year investigation by PREMIUM TIMES, which revealed that he solid the credentials he submitted to President Bola Tinubu and the Nigerian Senate throughout his ministerial affirmation.
Allegations of certificates forgery have dogged Mr Nnaji since July 2023, when President Tinubu named him among the many first batch of 28 ministerial nominees from 25 states forwarded to the Senate as a part of the president’s preliminary cupboard record, two months after taking workplace on 29 Might 2023.
Critics have lengthy insisted that Mr Nnaji didn’t full his college schooling and that each the bachelor’s diploma and Nationwide Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificates he offered to President Tinubu, in addition to to the places of work of the Secretary to the Authorities of the Federation (SGF), the State Safety Service (SSS), and the Senate, had been solid.
The findings of PREMIUM TIMES’ in depth examination of the paperwork had been damning and conclusive: each the diploma certificates and the NYSC discharge certificates within the minister’s possession are outright forgeries.
Mr Nnaji has now addressed the allegations for the primary time, and, in doing so, confirmed that UNN by no means issued him any certificates.
Admission in Court docket Filings
The minister’s admission is contained in court docket filings in a case he instituted towards the Minister of Schooling, the Nationwide Universities Fee (NUC), the College of Nigeria, its Vice-Chancellor, Simon Ortuanya, a professor, its Registrar, a former Appearing Vice-Chancellor, Oguenjiofor Ujam, a professor, and the Senate of the College.
Within the swimsuit earlier than Justice Hauwa Yilwa of the Federal Excessive Court docket, Abuja, Mr Nnaji sought, by a movement ex parte, an order granting him go away to problem prerogative writs prohibiting UNN and its officers from “tampering with” or persevering with to “tamper with” his tutorial information.
He additionally sought go away to problem a prerogative writ of mandamus compelling the college and its officers to launch his tutorial transcript to him, and requested the Minister of Schooling and the NUC to train their supervisory powers to compel UNN to take action.
Moreover, Mr Nnaji requested an interim injunction restraining UNN and its officers from “tampering” along with his tutorial information pending the willpower of the substantive swimsuit.
In her ruling of twenty-two September, Justice Yilwa granted three of the prayers sought however declined to problem any injunctive order towards the defendants. The case was then adjourned to six October (Monday) for additional listening to.
These accustomed to the matter stated Mr Nnaji initiated the case to dam the college from releasing particulars of his tutorial sojourn within the establishment to anybody, together with PREMIUM TIMES. He’s additionally stated to need a transcript to refresh his reminiscence concerning the place he dropped out of college.
Nnaji’s Surprising Disclosure
Nonetheless, in paragraphs 12 and 13 of his 34-paragraph verifying affidavit supporting the movement, Mr Nnaji made a shocking revelation, accusing UNN officers of refusing to problem him a certificates and, within the course of, confirming that he by no means collected one.
In paragraph 12, he said that the college admitted him in 1981 to check Microbiology/Biochemistry, and that he accomplished the programme and “graduated” in 1985.
However paragraph 13 contained the explosive admission:
“That regardless that I’m but to gather my certificates from the third Defendant (UNN), due largely to the non-cooperative perspective of the third–fifth Defendants (UNN, its Vice-Chancellor, and Registrar), the third Defendant issued a letter dated twenty first December 2023 to Individuals’s Gazette (consideration: Samuel Ogundipe) which said amongst different issues as follows:
‘That is to verify that Geoffrey Uchechukwu Nnaji, with registration quantity 1981/30725, was admitted in 1981 to check Microbiology/Biochemistry on the College of Nigeria, Nsukka. Mr Geoffrey Uchechukwu Nnaji graduated from the College of Nigeria in July 1985 with a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology/Biochemistry, Second Class (Hons.) Decrease Division.’”
The letter, signed by UNN Registrar Celine Nnebedum, was despatched to the Individuals’s Gazette in response to an enquiry. However its contents have since been invalidated.
Mrs Nnebedum later recanted in a letter to the Public Complaints Fee (PCC) in Might 2025, stating that the college searched its 1985 commencement information however couldn’t discover Mr Nnaji’s identify.
Equally, UNN Vice-Chancellor Ortuanya confirmed in a letter dated 3 October 2025 and addressed to PREMIUM TIMES that Mr Nnaji didn’t full his research and was by no means awarded a level by the college.
A senior college official advised PREMIUM TIMES that the establishment investigated Mrs Nnebedum’s letter and concluded that: “It’s both some folks within the information workplace had been influenced or manipulated to cowl up for Nnaji, or it was a honest mistake by the registry.”
The official added: “The reality of the matter is that he (Mr Nnaji) by no means graduated from right here. His file is unbroken. It comprises particulars as much as the purpose the place he dropped out.”
Nnaji and a Forgery Confession
By admitting that UNN by no means issued him a level certificates, Mr Nnaji has successfully confessed to forging his diploma and NYSC credentials he offered in 2023 for his ministerial appointment.
This raises essential questions: If UNN didn’t problem him a certificates, the place and the way did he acquire the diploma doc he submitted to Nigerian authorities? And if he by no means earned a level, how did he qualify for the NYSC programme?
Forward of his ministerial screening on 1 August 2023, Mr Nnaji submitted no less than 109 copies of a 10-page profile doc to the Senate Clerk’s workplace for distribution to all senators.
The primary web page featured his smiling {photograph}, describing him as “a visionary industrialist, oil and fuel professional, development big, healthcare practitioner, pro-democracy activist, commerce and funding strategist, and environmental safety professional.”
The subsequent three pages detailed his private knowledge, together with contact info, start, origin, marital standing, faith, schooling, work and enterprise expertise, and political achievements.
On web page three, he claimed to have earned a mixed diploma in Biochemistry and Microbiology from UNN, although he failed to offer a commencement yr.
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For his NYSC service, he claimed he labored as a laboratory supervisor on the College of Jos Instructing Hospital in 1985 and later as an assistant high quality management supervisor at Jos Worldwide Breweries Restricted in 1986.
The remaining six pages — stapled to the principle doc — contained copies of his West African Examination Council (WAEC) certificates, statutory declaration of age, Code of Conduct Bureau asset declaration slip, tax clearance certificates for 2022, his supposed UNN Bachelor of Science diploma, and his purported NYSC Certificates of Nationwide Service.
These final two paperwork have been the core of PREMIUM TIMES’ long-running investigation. After almost two years of verification, the newspaper conclusively decided that the diploma and NYSC certificates are forgeries.
Now that Mr Nnaji has admitted that UNN by no means issued him any diploma, the inevitable query stays: how did he come into possession of the certificates he submitted to Nigerian authorities?
Minister Retains Silent
Regardless of a number of efforts to acquire his feedback, Mr Nnaji declined to talk on to PREMIUM TIMES on the matter.
He ignored an in depth written enquiry despatched by this newspaper on 8 January 2024, which his workplace formally acknowledged and stamped as “acquired” on 18 January 2024 at 1 p.m.
He additionally refused to reply or return repeated follow-up calls, messages, and emails searching for his response to our findings.
