By Yemi Oyeyemi, Abuja
A civil society group, Center for Reform and Public Advocacy, has given the Inspector General of Police IGP a 48-hour ultimatum to arrest and initiate criminal prosecution of the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, (APC), Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu for allegedly supplying false academic qualifications to secure nomination.
The group threatened that should the IGP fail to act, a court action would be instituted against him for an order of mandamus to compel him to effect the arrest of Tinubu at the end of the ultimatum.
Legal adviser of the group and an Abuja-based legal practitioner, Mr Kalu Kalu Agu, at a press conference in Abuja on Saturday alleged that the former Lagos State Governor is not legally qualified to become the next president of Nigeria on grounds of supplying false information on oath in his form EC 9 submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Amongst others, the legal practitioner alleged that in 1999 Bola Tinubu claimed to have attended Saint Paul Aroloya Children Home School, Ibadan between 1958 and 1964 and Government College, Ibadan between 1965 and 1969, only to turn around in 2022 that he never attended any primary or secondary school in his EC9 form.
The group’s legal adviser, who presented a Certified True Copy ad-hoc report of the Lagos State House of Assembly, which investigated the former governor in 1999 pointed out that Tinubu clearly admitted discrepancies in his academic qualifications.
He said that the investigation of Tinubu’s academic qualification in 1999 was the aftermath of a petition written by a foremost legal luminary and social crusader, Late Chief Gani Fawehinmi, SAN.
The group claimed that its petition calling for arrest and prosecution of the APC’s Presidential Candidate was submitted to the IGP since June 16 and lamented that up till now, the police authority had not deemed it fit to effect the arrest of the politician.
He emphasised that nobody is above the law under the constitution and demanded that police must perform its constitutional role without fear or favour.
Kalu said that in the event that he is found to have made false allegations against Tinubu, the Police should arrest him and charge him to court appropriately.
The Abuja lawyer explained that the position of his group for the arrest of Tinubu was not politically motivated but was predicated on the need for good governance and transparent leadership Nigeria deserves in the 2023 general election.
Among vital documents attached to the petition delivered to the IGP and acknowledged by his office are the forms submitted to INEC by Tinubu in 1999 and 2022 for verification.
