Chicago State University releases Tinubu’s records to Atiku

Chicago State University (CSU) has complied with the order of a Federal Judge in the United States District Court in Northern Illinois, Ms Nancy Maldonado, last Saturday, who had ordered the institution to release the documents to Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.

Alhaji Atiku , the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 Presidential election, had sought the document to support his appeal at the Supreme Court challenging the judgement of the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal (PEPT) that had earlier dismissed grounds for his petition.

However, Judge Maldonado Judge last Saturday had vacated her own order by ordering the CSU to release the said academic records within two days of the ruling, meaning the CSU has till 12pm of Monday afternoon to make the documents public to Atiku and his legal team.

Tinubu’s lawyers had appealed the verdict of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in Chicago, Eastern Division, presided over by Judge Jeffrey Gilbert who had earlier ordered CSU to release Tinubu’s records to Atiku, last Thursday.

In her earlier ruling, Thursday, Judge Maldonado had instead ordered a stay of execution on the ruling by Judge Gilbert, before vacating the order on Saturday to give the CSU two days within which to release to Atiku the entire records of Tinubu at the university.

As at Sunday, lawyers of President Bola Tinubu were yet to appeal the order by Judge Maldonado.

It has since emerged that Tinubu’s lawyers had approached three separate courts in the United States seeking an order vacating the ruling by Judge Maldonado, but unsuccessfully, as no court accepted to hear their appeal.

According to Atiku, Tinubu may have submitted a forged document to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in order to contest the 2023 presidential election, as the former Vice President is also alleging perjury against the incumbent president and declared winner of the election.

 Atiku had earlier obtained an order of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in Chicago, Eastern Division, presided over by Judge Jeffrey Gilbert to compel the CSU to release Tinubu’s records to him.

In a ruling delivered on Saturday, the judge, Nancy Maldonado, after dismissing Tinubu’s objection, gave the university until 12 noon on Monday to release the documents to Atiku.

Ms Maldonando dismissed Tinubu’s objection to the September 20 decision of a magistrate judge of the court, Jeffery Gilbert.

The judge on Saturday fully affirmed Judge Gilbert’s ruling ordering the CSU to release Tinubu’s academic records as requested by Atiku, as she further insisted Atiku had the right to have access to the records.

“For the reasons stated in the Court’s accompanying Memorandum Opinion and Order, the Court overrules President Tinubu’s objections (44] and adopts Judge Gilbert’s recommended decision [40] in full.

“The Court therefore grants Mr. Abubakar’s application under 28 U.S.C. § 1782. [1],” Ms Maldonado ruled.

She said the CSU must complete all necessary filings with regard to the release by 5 pm on Tuesday.

“Respondent CSU is directed to produce all relevant and non-privileged documents in response to Requests for Production Nos. 1 through 4 (as narrowed by Judge Gilbert and adopted by the District Court in its opinion) in Mr. Abubakar’s subpoena, by 12:00 p.m. (noon) CDT, on Monday, October 2, 2023.

“The Rule 30(b)(6) deposition of CSU’s corporate designee must be completed by 5:00 p.m. CDT on Tuesday, October 3, 2023,” the court ordered.

The judge warned that any request for stay of the judgement from Tinubu to her court would be denied, as she, however, said he is free to appeal her ruling at the Seventh Circuit Court.

The Judge had on Friday said Nigerians have shown interest in the case by bombarding her with multiple emails seeking to know the status of the case. She added that because of the public interest in the case, she would give a hasty ruling.

Atiku had told the US district court that he had up to October 5 to file the documents from the CSU against Tinubu at the Supreme Court.

Already, Atiku has an appeal pending at the Supreme Court challenging the verdict of the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal (PEPT) which had dismissed his petition challenging the declaration of Tinubu by INEC as winner of the February 25 election.

The PEPT had also dismissed grounds for the petition challenging Tinubu’s eligibility and perjury allegations by the PDP candidate in its final judgement.

Already, Atiku had filed his appeal at the Supreme Court predicated on 35 grounds, as he insisted that the PEPT committed a grave error and miscarriage of justice in its findings and conclusion in its petition challenging INEC’s declaration of Tinubu as President.

The notice of appeal also prayed the Supreme Court to overturn the PEPT’s findings and conclusions, claiming that they do not accurately reflect the facts of his case.

According to Atiku, the PEPT erred in law when it refused to nullify the presidential election held on February 25, 2023, on the grounds of non-compliance with the Electoral Act 2022, when evidence before it showed that INEC conducted the election on the basis of grave and gross misrepresentation, in violation of the principles of the Electoral Act 2022, based on the doctrine of legitimate expectation.

However, despite doubts over whether the Supreme Court will accept new evidence in Atiku’s appeal, many in the country insist, the matter goes beyond the apex court, as they speculate the damage the outcome could do to the President’s political career.

Reacting to Tinubu’s appeal, Atiku’s media adviser, Paul Ibe, said the President should not hide anything, adding that his principal’s Atiku’s legal team would wait for the court process while whatever was hidden would unfold.

 “What is in that file if it is released that would bring harm that is irreparable to him (Tinubu)? It has become important for Bola Tinubu to let Nigerians know what he is hiding in his academic record at Chicago University.

“We cannot mortgage the destiny of over 200 million people for the interest of one individual. He is bringing embarrassment to Nigeria; it is shameful, and it is a tragedy to have something as simple as releasing your records to be subject to public scrutiny.

“Nigerians should begin to take an interest in this matter. Nigerians should be asking questions about what is going on. Why should the President of Nigeria not be a product of due process, transparency, and accountability? It has never reached this low, and it is unfortunate. We will get him.

“We will await the court process. They can only stall, but finally, whatever it is that is being hidden will be released,” Mr Ibe said.

With this ruling, Atiku is expected to now tender all evidence backing his allegation of perjury and ineligibility against Tinubu as he seeks to disqualify the APC candidate from election.

Atiku had on August 2 filed an application for the court to order CSU to produce documents relating to Tinubu, as well as leave to get the school’s administrators to authenticate any documents submitted under oath.

“Section 137 (1)(j) of the Nigerian Constitution (amended in 2010) specifically stated that no one would be legitimately elected president of Nigeria if the person has presented a forged certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission,” Atiku’s originating summons read in part.

According to Atiku’s lawyer, Angela Liu, Tinubu’s certificate from the CSU is allegedly filled with discrepancies beginning with the signatories which carries those of the university’s officials who were not staff of the institution as at the time of the issuance of the document.

This in addition to the female designation of Tinubu, instead of male as it appeared on the credentials, while the documents also carried different dates.

The misleading irregularities prompted Abubakar to file the suit to compel CSU to produce records relating to Tinubu and make its top officials available for deposition to certify the produced records, according to the Nigerian opposition leader’s lawyers.

During a hearing on the matter on September 12, the CSU’s lawyer Michael Hayes, said the school could not authenticate Tinubu’s certificate if asked under oath, although he said Tinubu attended the school and graduated in 1979.

Tinubu’s lawyers, led by Christopher Carmichael, argued that the court should not grant Abubakar’s application because it was a frivolous expedition aimed at soiling the Nigerian president’s image.

Tinubu’s lawyers also argued that Nigerian Supreme Court would not accept fresh evidence that was not produced during the tribunal proceeding.

Judge Gilbert then ruled that courts across the U.S. have traditionally taken a broad and liberal view in granting applications under Section 1782, a statute that allows the release of documents and evidence domiciled in the U.S. to be obtained and used in a foreign proceeding, as he adjourned hearing till a later date to be communicated to the parties, after requesting them to submit to him further evidence supporting their case.

Atiku’s U.S lawyer, Ms Angela Liu in a report, had, confirmed that the Chicago State University provided two similar certificates indicating that Tinubu attended its institution.

Liu said while the first certificate was signed by three people, the other one was signed by two people.

Liu also said that while one document asserts that Tinubu was issued the certificate on June 22, 1979, another suggests that the president received the degree on June 27, 1979.

“The document marked ‘A’ is the certificate submitted by Tinubu to INEC. This certificate is in every material respect, exactly the same as the document marked ‘B’ except for the following.

“Document ‘A’ is signed by at least 3 people whereas ‘B’ is signed by only 2 people.

“The document marked ‘E’ states that Tinubu was issued a certificate on 22nd June 1979 but then proceeded to forward a copy of a certificate (‘B’) dated 27th June 1979. Please note that ‘A’ is actually dated 22nd June 1979, but this document did not emanate from CSU. Only ‘B’ did.

“It is clear that either ‘A’ or ‘B’ is fake (if not both). You cannot have two certificates issued by the same university, to the same person, for the same course of study, but issued on different dates and signed by two different sets of people.

“The documents ‘A’ and ‘B’ both state that Tinubu graduated with a BSc in ‘Business AND Administration’, whereas document ‘E’ (which came from CSU) states that he graduated with a BSc in ‘Business Administration’, Liu said.

Continuing, the lawyer said CSU’s website reads: “The College of Business offers a contemporary business program leading to a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration or Masters in Business Administration (MBA)”, adding that ‘nowhere is there any reference to ‘business and administration’ throughout the website.”

“It is not possible for Elnora D. Daniel to be among those who signed both certificates because she was only the president of the university between 1998 and 2008.

“She was neither president of the university in 1979 – when the certificate was purportedly issued – nor was she president in 2022, when the replacement certificates were issued,” she said.

The lawyer also expressed dismay that both certificates bear different letter fonts and logos of the university.

According to filings by Oluwole Afolabi and Christopher Carmichael, counsels to Tinubu, an unidentified clerk of the university made the error about the date the school stated on his recently-issued certificate, thereby creating ‘the appearance of differences.’

Also reacting to the U.S court decision on Tinubu, Mr Osita Chidoka, a former Minister of Aviation, described it as ‘a national shame,’ adding that a forged certificate finding leaves Tinubu ‘in a vulnerable position morally and legally.’

While blaming the Department of State Security (DSS) and other agencies for not doing the job they were created for, Chidoka noted that the reputation of Nigeria is still in tatters because of the failure of national institutions to perform due diligence no matter who is involved.

“If it turns out tomorrow that our President presented a forged certificate to INEC, Nigerians will bow down their heads globally in shame. On the other hand, if it turns out that his certificate is genuine, again our reputation as a people is still in tatters because of the failure of national institutions to perform due diligence no matter who is involved. On both counts it reinforces global perceptions and prejudice against Nigerians. We all bear the burden.

“A forged certificate finding leaves President Tinubu in a vulnerable position morally and legally. As he did not present primary and secondary certificates to INEC, a forged CSU certificate makes him unqualified to stand for the office of President as he does not possess the minimum qualification S.131(D) of the 1999 Constitution as amended. Of course, the next issue is the case of perjury, the presentation of false documents under oath.

“How INEC, accepted a university degree without the qualifying certificates would continue to be a national mystery. A language in our electoral legislation to forestall such obvious infractions is required.

“The decision of the District Court and the whole proceedings is not a moment of triumphalism but a sober moment of introspection. It is a moment when as a nation we ask ourselves: “What are our national values? “Who or which institution should have ordered the full investigation of the questionable certificate?

“Considering that he did not present a primary or secondary certificate should our courts be concerned with the technicality of the tendering process of the CSU certificate or the disgrace and global moral damage a forged certificate would wrought on Nigeria?

“Why did our national security system not conduct a discrete investigation and advise the candidate and INEC about the status of his certificate?

“A few years ago The DSS, in an act of institutional independence and courage, wrote to the Senate to reject Police Commissioner Magu as EFCC Chairman not minding his nomination by a sitting President. This was based on their intelligence report of his nefarious conduct that pales into insignificance against a possible forgery case by a President. Why the silence now?

“For me, the issue is beyond legalism. If and that is a big if, the certificate is forged, President Tinubu should resign immediately. It is not a legal matter but a national honour and moral issue. If he does not, the National Assembly should do the needful to restore our dignity as a people. I also expect the Supreme Court to rise to the occasion and restore order to our electoral process.

“If the certificate is not forged, the President should conduct a wide-ranging reorganisation of our national security system for failure to save the country from this needless embarrassment and reputational damage.

“On either count, the National Assembly should start a constitutional amendment process to end all election judicial challenges before the assumption of office of all elected persons at all levels.

“A reform of the judiciary to introduce an automated case assignment system, the introduction of a transparent process for recruitment of judges, and the public display of evaluation of judges’ performance annually using the agreed framework to increase public oversight of judicial officers and improve the administration of justice. The growing unanimity in arriving at decisions in our courts is disturbing.

“The bold challenge of President Tinubu by HE Abubakar Atiku in the US is the most prominent sign of state failure. It is depressing but maybe it is an inflection point to alter the character of the Nigerian.”

Further providing confirmation on the handover of Tinubu’s documents to Atiku’s lawyers in the United States, investigative journalist, David Hundeyin writing via his X handle(@DavidHundeyin), Monday evening, said preparations are already underway.

“As at 40 minutes ago, preparations were being made by @ChicagoState to hand over the documents to Atiku’s lawyers.

“I will update once I confirm the records have been handed over.

“Atiku’s legal team tells me that Tinubu’s lawyers approached 3 Appeal courts in the US today without success.

“They then requested Atiku’s lawyers in Chicago to shift the deposition time tomorrow from 10am to 12noon so as to buy time.

“Atiku’s team refused,” Hundeyin posted, Monday evening.

Also commenting, a Nigeria, Benjamin Mayor (@BENM2024) wrote:

“BREAKING NEWS. Tinubu’s presidency may abruptly come to an end before supreme court judgment.

“From the constitutional and moral standpoint, if his Chicago State University CSU records turn out to be forged, it is expected of Tinubu to resign immediately. Failure to do so, the National Assembly will commence his impeachment process because he has committed an act of perjury.”

Meanwhile, in a related development, reports have claimed that the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) has arrived at the list of Justices in the panel to hear the appeals by Labour Party and its presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, as well as, the PDPO and Atiku challenging the judgement of the PEPT in September which dismissed their petitions challenging the declaration of Tinubu by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, now President Bola Tinubu.