Nigerian Army Denies Having Possession of Buhari's Certificates

The Nigerian army has denied being in possession of Muhammadu Buhari, the All Progressive Party's presidential candidate for the 2015 elections in February, Daily Times reports.

Buhari had in a signed affidavit submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, claimed that the army was with the original copies of his certificates.

However, the Army have reportedly stated that they do not keep the certificates of any serving or retired officer or soldier.

‘The Army can not keep anybody’s original certificate because it is the personal property of the owner,’’ adding that such original certificates were only needed at the point of entry into the service," a military source said, adding that the Navy Secretary, NAVSEC, keep the documents of all Naval officers and ratings and not their original certificates which is their personal property.

“The original certificate of any officer or soldier is only needed at the point of entry into the service either as a cadet officer entering the Nigerian Defence Academy, or the recruitment officers when interviewing recruits to be sent to the depot for training. That is so, because they are needed to verify what were in the photocopies supplied to them or from the necessary examining bodies.”

General Buhari is contesting the presidential election for the fourth time under different political parties including the defunct All Nigeria People’s Party, ANPP and the Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, but the issue of his qualifications had never been controversial until the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, recently described him as a ‘’semi- illiterate.’’