UTME Fraud: Was Mmesoma Seeing Successful And Wealthy Certificate-Forging Politicians As Role Models That She Landed In Trouble? -By Isaac Asabor

There is no denying the fact that storms over forged (or missing) certificates have been raging from one political dispensation to the other in Nigeria’s political scene since 1999 when the country transitioned from military to civilian rule.

Without any scintilla of hyperbole, not a few high-profile politicians; both in elective and appointive positions, have been caught in the web of forged or lost certificates. In as much as not all of the accused were deemed culpable as some cases were dismissed in Court due to a lack of proof, a few others were rightly found guilty of this shenanigan.

For instance, in 2019, there was a scandalous case of certificate forgery that involved the then Director-General of the Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi (FIIRO),  Dr. ChimaIgwe, who came under probe after failing to present his Ph.D. certificate more than 17 years after claiming to have bagged the degree.

Igwe, who claimed to have bagged the degree from the UniversiteNationale du Benin (now Universited’Abomey- Calavi) in Benin Republic, received several promotions based on the purported degree and was said to have been promoted at least three times based on the degree.

In a similar vein, Salisu Buhari, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives of Nigeria, who was inaugurated on June 3, 1999, resigned from office over allegations of certificate forgery. He was later convicted of certificate forgery and sentenced to two years in prison with an option of a fine.

As gathered, Buhari claimed that he obtained a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Toronto, Canada in 1990; a diploma in accountancy from the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, in 1988, and that he served under the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) in 1991. Again, Buhari was said to have been born on 3 January 1963, but it later emerged that he was actually born on January 3, 1970, making him 29 years at the time he contested and won election to the House, whereas the constitutionpegged the age limit for a member of the House at 30. It was also revealed that he actually got admission into ABU but that he was withdrawn because he falsified his credentials.

To buttress the foregoing, it is germane to make reference to the following headlines that were used to anchor news stories and features that pertain to the challenge posed by certificate forgery, particularly among partisan politicians.  “Top Politicians in the web of alleged certificate scandal”, “Controversies over forged (or missing) certificates have become a recurring theme in Nigeria’s political scene since 1999 when the country …”, ”Nigerian politicians and pestilence of forged, missing …” “Nigerian political season of certificate forgery scandal …” and “Prominent Nigerians with certificate scandals”. Other headlines in the same identicalness that have been used in anchoring news stories and features cut across the following:  “Top 10 prominent Nigerians that have been accused of …”, “Certificate forgery: Enugu gov-elect, Mba fully mobilized for …” “Certificate Forgery: Group commends NYSC’s integrity”

Given the somewhat systemic rot, there is no denying the fact that certificate forgers who are no doubt dishonest are becoming role models for youngsters in the country, particularlyas it is obvious that since Miss Mmesoma Ejikeme, the young adult (19 years, not 16) for close to 2 weeks now occupied the media space that not a few discerning Nigerians believes so

In fact, if the forgoing is right as been opined in this context, then it will not be exaggerative to opine that the number of role models that our youngsters can look up to when it comes to engaging in false claims, just as Mmesoma has confessed to have done, is fast increasing. In fact, how many people in our public life can anyone be proud of or vouch for when it comes to honesty, courage, commitment, and hard work?

Without a doubt, there is no denying the fact thatour youngsters do not have seemingly ideal role models to look up to, sadly because of corruption being perpetrated by some of the people who are doing exactly the opposite by being dishonest, and deceitful, and who,  even at that arebecoming more and more powerful and wealthier.

In fact, for the sake of clarity, it is expedient to lay credence to understanding how youngsters see no problem in the dubious and mischievous disposition being displayed by some successful and wealthy politicians who figuratively ride on the wings of false and dubious claims by making reference to a lyrical aspect of late Jamaica’s reggae sensation, Peter Tosh, in one of his hit songs, “Can’t Blame The Youth” sang, “You teach the youths about Christopher Columbus/And you said he was a very great man/You teach the youth about Marco Polo/And you said he was a very great man/You teach the youths about the Pirate Hawkins/

“And you said he was a very great man/You teach the youths about Pirate Morgan/And you said he was a very great man/So you can’t blame the youths, of today/You can’t fool the youths/You can’t blame the youths/You can’t fool the youths/

“All these great men were doing, /Robbing, raping, kidnapping and killing/So-called great men were doing, /Robbing, raping, kidnapping, and killing/So you can’t blame the youths/You can’t fool the youths/You can’t blame the youths/You can’t fool the youths”.

In his comment on the issue, the maverick singer, Charles Oputa, aka Charly Boy, reacted to the saga between Ejikeme Joy Mmesoma and the leadership of the Joint Admission Matriculation Board (JAMB) who admitted to using her phone to inflate her score to 362.

Given the brouhaha that her action has generated, it is germane to opine in this context that any society that is not morally sound is bound to witness all sorts of social menace.  Thus, it is not unexpected that if the present crop of leaders does not refrain from dubious behaviours that the possibility of witnessing other youths replicating what Mmesoma did if they are not doing it already, cannot be ruled out.

In fact, it is shocking to observe that as the issue continues to trend, particularly on social media platforms,the tradition in our dear country that whenever an issue arises, we point accusing fingers and play the blame game instead of brainstorming on how best to tackle the problem persists. Thus, some blame her parents, particularly her father, and some point accusing fingers at her Igbo tribe while others believe she is responsible for her behavior or misbehavior.

In my view, successful and wealthy certificate-forging politicians should desist from carrying themselves as role models, and that landing vulnerable youths, who are invariably leaders of tomorrow, into trouble.