By Abraham Ekong
In what looks like a comedy of errors, the Lamidi Apapa-led faction of the Labour Party has alleged some discrepancies in the academic certificates of its presidential candidate, Peter Obi.
Spokesman for faction, Abayomi Arabambi, made the allegation in an interview on AIT News on Thursday.
The development is coming in the wake of the controversy that trails President Bola Tinubu’s Chicago State University certificate.
Obi had on Wednesday knocked Tinubu at a press conference where he challenged the former Lagos governor to reveal his true identity to Nigerians.
But Arabambi insisted on the live television programme that it would be unfair of the LP candidate to attack Tinubu when he also has discrepancies in academic qualifications.
While disclosing that he was member of the panel that screened Obi before the party’s presidential primary, the factional spokesman alleged that the name on the academic certificate Obi bagged from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka contradicts the name on that of his National Youth Service Corps.
“I was part of the people who did the screening for him. In the form EC9 we gave him, he wrote that he attended the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and that he finished his youth service. But unfortunately, in the final submission of the form, he only submitted his school certificate.
“So, something is fishy, and I want to say the name the school sent for mobilisation was not what was written on his NYSC certificate, and he knows that.
“For us, we don’t know the true identity of Peter Obi even in the Labour Party because everything was shrouded in secrecy at that time in Asaba.
“You know we were rushing because we had just a day to do our presidential primary, and that was why he was able to get away with it. But we have it on record that Obi’s name on his NYSC certificate and the one on his university of Nigeria, Nsukka, certificate are different.”
But the National Publicity Secretary of the, Obiora Ifoh, has debunked the allegation.
While describing Arabambi as one of the renegades of the party, Ifoh told our correspondent that his predecessor was out to cause chaos in the party by doing the bidding of his alleged paymasters.
“Arabambi should try something else. Our candidate, Peter Gregory Obi, is a known figure whose parentage, birth, schools attended and record of public service, has never been in dispute.
“As he said publicly yesterday (Wednesday), some of his mates at the University of Nigeria Nsukka are alive. In fact, they are holding high office in the management team of the university today. This can be verified. His certificates are in the public domain and can be scrutinised by any interested Nigerian.
“Arabambi, is obviously doing the bidding of his paymasters who are desperate to destroy our party. We challenge Arabambi’s principal to do the same and save our nation further embarrassment,” Ifoh said.
(ThePunch)
