Atiku Challenges Tinubu: “Why Should the President Be Exempted From the Same Standard as Ordinary Nigerians?”

The Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress ADC Atiku Abubakar, has questioned discrepancies allegedly surrounding the academic certificate President Bola Ahmed Tinubu submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), arguing that public officials should be held to the same standards as ordinary Nigerians.

Atiku made the remarks while addressing youths at the African Democratic Congress (ADC) National Youth Leadership Summit.

He drew a comparison between the scrutiny a job applicant would face over conflicting certificates and the certificate presented by Tinubu to INEC.

According to Atiku, one version of the certificate reportedly bears June 22 as the date, while another version carries June 27. He also referenced questions raised over the signatures and the description of the degree on the documents.

“If you were applying for a job today and submitted a certificate bearing one date, while another version of what purports to be the same certificate carried a different date and different signatures, what do you think your prospective employer would do?” Atiku asked.

He said such discrepancies would ordinarily prompt an employer to demand an explanation and could potentially lead to the rejection of an applicant’s application.

Atiku stressed that his argument was not necessarily for people to accept his conclusion but for Nigerians to demand equal standards of accountability from those seeking or occupying public office.

“I am not asking you to accept my conclusion. I am asking something much simpler: if a young Nigerian would be required to explain such discrepancies before getting an ordinary job, why should the man seeking Nigeria’s highest job be exempt from the same standard?” he said.

The former vice president said the issue reflected a broader problem in Nigeria, where different standards are sometimes applied to people in positions of power and ordinary citizens.

“That is part of the Nigeria we must change, a Nigeria where there is one standard for those in power and another for everyone else,” Atiku said.