FOLLOWING the latest revelation that Uche Nnaji, Nigeria’s Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, allegedly used forged certificates to secure his position, questions have again emerged about how the Senate and the State Security Service (SSS) repeatedly fail to detect discrepancies in the credentials of political appointees during screening processes.
The ICIR reports that the case adds to Nigeria’s shameful list of forged credential cases among public officials, as individuals with questionable qualifications or integrity slip through vetting processes put in place to uphold transparency and competence in public office.
On Saturday, October 4, Premium Times’ investigation revealed that Nnaji, who was appointed by President Bola Tinubu, presented a Bachelor of Science certificate purportedly from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), and a National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) discharge certificate.
The report, however, quoted a response to a freedom of information request sent by the newspaper, which stated that while Nnaji was admitted in 1981, there is no record that he completed his studies or graduated in July 1985, as his certificate claims.
In a letter dated October 2, 2025, and signed by the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Simon Ortuanya, UNN disowned the certificate currently being paraded by the minister.
“From every available record and information from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, we are unable to confirm that Mr Geoffrey Uchechukwu Nnaji, the current Minister of Science and Technology, graduated from the University of Nigeria in July 1985, as there are no records of his completion of study in the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.
“Flowing from above, the University of Nigeria, Nsukka DID NOT and consequently, COULD NOT have issued the purported certificate, or at all, in July 1985 to Mr Geoffrey Uchechukwu Nnaji, the current Minister of Science and Technology. This conclusion is also in consonance with an earlier letter dated May 13, 2025, ref. No, RUN/SR/R/V, issued by the University to the Public Complaints Commission in respect of the same subject matter,” the letter was quoted.
Similarly, the investigation also exposed how the NYSC certificate presented by the minister was found to have contained inconsistencies, including an invalid serial number and a forged signature of a corps official who had not yet assumed office at the stated time of issuance.
The ICIR reports that forgery is a criminal offence under Section 465 of the Nigerian Criminal Code Act, which defines it as the making of a false document or alteration of a genuine one with the intent to deceive.
The offence is punishable under Section 467 of the Criminal Code Act, which states thus: “Any person who forges any document, writing, or seal, is guilty of an offence which, unless otherwise stated, is a felony, and he is liable, if no other punishment is provided, to imprisonment for three years.”
A recurring national disgrace
Recall that then-Minister of Finance Kemi Adeosun brought the Muhammadu Buhari administration into national disrepute in 2018 after a Premium Times report revealed that she presented a forged NYSC exemption certificate as part of her credentials.
The purported NYSC certificate was said to have been signed by a former director-general of the NYSC, Yusuf Bomoi, in 2009.
However, Maharazu Tsiga, former NYSC DG, who took over from Bomoi, said Adeosun’s certificate could not have been issued by the NYSC.
Although former President Buhari had referred Kemi Adeosun and other ministerial nominees to the DSS for security screening in September 2015, it was unclear how her forged NYSC exemption certificate slipped through the agency’s scrutiny.
The minister consequently resigned from office after public backlash.
Before that, in December 2017, the same Buhari administration appointed eight persons confirmed to have died sometime ago, into boards of parastatals in the country.
The office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) announced the appointment of 209 board chairpersons and 1,258 board members. It was the largest single appointment made by the President since assuming office in 2015.
The ICIR, however, reported that the appointment, which was made on December 29, 2017, exposed the SSS’s failure to vet the list of appointees.
The appointed members were Reverend Christopher Utova as a member of the Nigeria Institute of Social and Economic Research; late Senator Francis Okpozo as Chairman of the Nigerian Press Council; and late Chief Donald Ugbaja as a member of the Consumer Protection Council.
Aliyu and Alanamu’s ICPC Board Appointment
In a similar development, in 2017, The ICIR investigations exposed how two individuals appointed by then-Acting President Yemi Osinbajo to the board of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) were themselves under corruption investigations.
The appointees, Maimuna Aliyu and Sa’ad Alanamu, were being probed for alleged multi-million-naira fraud by both the ICPC and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
While Alanamu was being investigated on corruption charges allegedly committed while he headed several institutions in Kwara State, Aliyu reportedly had a longstanding case of abuse of office, misappropriation and diversion of public funds against her.
The ICIR cited sources from the ICPC claiming that charges were being prepared against Alanamu when his name was announced as a member of the new board of the commission.
He allegedly collected bribes from contractors handling TETFUND contracts, which he approved as Chairman of the Board of Kwara State College of Education, Ilorin.
Similarly, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Nigerian Police had also investigated several corruption cases against Aliyu, a former Executive Director of the Aso Savings and Loans.
The report cited police documents at the time, which recommended Aliyu’s prosecution for the diversion of over N120 million.
Apart from the N120 million allegedly misappropriated by her, the bank also lodged several complaints of abuse of office and conversion or diversion of its funds, totalling nearly N1 billion.
The bank alleged that in 2012, Aliyu sought and got a mortgage facility of N40 million to purchase five houses – four-bedroom detached mansionettes. However, after she resigned from her appointment in September 2013, the former Executive Director said she could no longer bear the burden of the payments and requested the bank to cancel the mortgage on four units and take them over. She said she would continue to maintain the mortgage contract on just one unit.
Buhari’s aide Okoi Obono-Obla alleged forgery of certificate
In July 2018, former president Buhari’s Special Assistant on Prosecutions, Okoi Obono-Obla, was indicted by the report of a House of Representatives panel over forgery of his secondary school certificate and wrongful utilisation of public funds.
The panel also found that Obono-Obla and members of the Special Investigative Panel on the Recovery of Public Property, which he chaired, collected N17 million in excess sitting allowances and violated presidential orders by flying business class.
The probe began after the House resolved to examine the activities of the panel he chaired, following accusations that it had exceeded its mandate.
During the inquiry, lawmakers said they received a petition alleging that Obono-Obla used a forged West African Examination Council (WAEC) certificate to gain admission into the University of Jos, where he studied Law.
“..the Certified True Copy, CTC, of the result for Candidate No: 094051247 May/June 1982, showed that the candidate was absent from the exam for Literature. In the result with the University of Jos, he claimed to have credit in Literature in English in the statement of result issued to him by Mary Knoll College, Calabar.
“However, WAEC disclaimed the result in the Certified True Copy sent to the committee. This casts doubt as to the integrity and character of the Chairman of the Panel.”
SSS and the Lawmakers’ failure
These incidents, according to critics, showed a consistent pattern of failure by vetting institutions to uphold the standards prescribed by law.
Constitutionally, the Senate is required to screen all ministerial nominees and other political positions, while the SSS conducts background checks.
Under Section 147(2) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), ministerial nominees must be screened and confirmed by the Senate before appointment.
Also, according to international best practices for legislative screening of nominees, the lawmakers are expected to do background checks of nominees and have access to records of asset declaration, and other relevant documents before the screening.
However, many Nigerians have said these processes are often compromised by political considerations.
They noted that the Senate has largely turned the exercise into a ceremonial show, with many nominees asked to “take a bow and go” rather than undergo meaningful scrutiny.
The “bow and go” tradition is an unwritten convention in the Senate that exempts former and serving lawmakers from rigorous screening when nominated for public office.
Under this practice, such nominees are simply asked to take a bow and leave without facing any questions. Although the rationale was that legislators, past or present, should be spared the process since they are part of the body constitutionally empowered to conduct screenings.
However, the privilege over time has been extended to some individuals who have never served in the National Assembly.
Similarly, the National Security Agencies Act of 1986 mandates the State Security Service (SSS) to provide protective and preventive security through background checks on public officials, including verifying the authenticity of their records before appointment.
According to legal expert Onikepo Braithwait,e “the scope of the SSS screening function for any position whatsoever, be it for Minister or the Judiciary or wherever, is ultra vires the functions of the SSS set out in Section 2(3)(a) -(c) of the NSA Act, which concerns matters of the internal security of Nigeria only.
“The SSS also investigates educational qualifications and credentials, financials, moral character, family, reputation, and does security and regulatory checks.”
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M