Certificate Racketeering Among Politicians: Kudos To Amaechi As He Lets The Cat Out Of The Bag -By Isaac Asabor

There is no denying the fact that Nigerians have for many years, particularly since 1999, when Nigeria returned to democratic rule been faulting not a few politicians for parading fake academic and birth certificates to contest in elections conducted by each passing political dispensation thereby sidelining qualified persons, most of whom are subjected to losing elections as they are rigged out by these so called “electoral fraudsters”. Without doubt, these electoral criminals are literarily wired to rig elections as they understand the dynamics of forgery in all its ramifications; even right from their school days. After all, our elders says “The smell of fart determines how offensive that of the faeces that emanated therefrom will be”.

Without resort to scandalizing any political personality in this context, hullabaloos over forged (or missing) certificates have turned out to be a cyclical leitmotif in Nigeria’s political scene since 1999 when the country returned to democracy as not a few high-profile politicians, both in elective and appointive positions, have been caught in the storm of forged certificates. However, not all allegations resulted in confirmed cases of certificate forgery, as some cases were dismissed in court due to a lack of evidence. Unfortunately, many were found guilty of this shenanigan.

Given the widespread rumours and deepening suspicion that not a few politicians have fraudulently been rising to the top position in the country through the use of fake certificates, it is germane to reminiscence that Plato in the Republic envisaged an oligarchic state which would be governed by the most educated and the learned. But today we appear to have wanderedfairly a bit from this idea of rule by the wisest as the educational qualifications of some Nigerian politicians are being exposed to have been counterfeited. It is a shame that it is possible for politicians to be elected as governors, lawmakers, chairmen among other political positions even asthose appointed as Special Assistants, commissioners, ministers at the topmost levels are even without verified certificates.

At this juncture, it is expedient to opine that the slur which certificate racketeering among the political elites has cast on Nigeria in the eyes of international community is about to be half solved as the former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, who spoke at the 2023 The Niche Annual Lecture themed “Why We Stride and Slip: Leadership, Nationalism, and the Nigerian Condition,” held on Thursday in Lagos where he was a special guest queried, “What is new to say, Nigerians don’t react to anything. Has any politician told you he is not a thief? Which politician told you he went to university, which politician told you she served in NYSC, and which politician told you he has his certificate?

“Nigerians know and still vote for them, so what is your problem? I say why should I speak when already there’s nothing new?”

Personally speaking, this writer is of the opinion that kudos should be given to Amaechi as he has no doubt hit the nail on the head by disclosing that certificate racketeering among politicians and bad leadership has been the bane of governance in Nigeria.

In fact, despite the level of disgrace which most politicians have variously experienced in past political dispensations, it seems they are not in any way ashamed; individually or collectively, when caught with fake certificates and other documents aimed at boosting their electoral values and qualifications.

The reason for the foregoing view cannot be farfetched as unscrupulous politicians keep finding their ways to beating the rules laid down by the leadership of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), thereby locking qualify aspirants, who hold authentic academic and birth certificates, from the political space, and unambiguously from the political race they intended running.

Despite the fact that the ongoing administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu lacks the moral justification, and does not have the rectitude to bear the moral torch of tackling certificate forgery menace once and for all, it is still expedient to urge the administration to tackle the menace headlong as it has remained one of the albatrosses of Nigeria’s democracy. It is literarily a pain in the neck of good governance in Nigeria.

Be that as it may, if the government shows sincere resolve to tackle the menace, this writer predicts that it will shock everyone to know that a wide spectrum of the population of political elite went into politics and got elected to power by using forged academic and birth certificates. The reason cannot be farfetched as evidences are on ground to prove that most politicians are parading fake academic certificates. Evidently, not a few politicians cheat to meet the constitutional requirement that attaches a specific academic threshold to certain elective and appointive offices.

In fact, concerns raised over the enormousness of forgery by the former River State Governor, and minister of Transport is compelling enough to make the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC)to issue a warning to the INEC to verify academic certificates of politicians that are presently holding offices from the ward level to the federal level to tender their certificates for verifications.

In a similar vein, Registrars of State Judiciaries across the country should be warned by the EFCC to be meticulous enough in administering affidavits sworn before Commissioners for Oaths in customary courts, magistrate courts, or the state’s High Court of Justice as most politicians lie about their age.

Needless to emphasize, universities must guard against having their reputations being tainted by fake documents bearing their names. This nauseating issue cannot be over-flogged as fake certificates erode the statuses and credibility of our institutions of higher learning; the purported issuer.

As it were, fake certificates have allowed clueless politicians to secure political positionsthey are ill-equipped to occupy. This is manifested in the level of incompetence and poor service provision in public offices. Those who forge certificates belittle the value of education and genuine academic certificates for which others have toiled for, but are unable to secure employment because fraudsters beat them to available job opportunities.

In fact, ridding Nigeria’s political space of fraudsters must be prioritized by institutions charged with that responsibility. Meritocracy should be the beacon in elective and appointive public positions to eradicate the mediocrity that assails our public sector. Individuals behind syndicates that deal in forged certificates should be rounded up and punished, and be that as it may, kudos should be given to Amaechi for having the courage to let the cat out of the bag.