APC Says Nigeria Would Be Destroyed Over Buhari's Certificate  

Source: pointblanknews.com

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has warned that those who are bent on

destroying its Presidential Candidate, Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, on the

basis of his certificates may end up destroying the country's military.

In a statement issued in Lagos on Tuesday by its National Publicity

Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party warned that the PDP and the

Jonathan Administration are playing a dangerous game by trying to

compromise the military in order to satisfy selfish political objectives,

and urged the military, as a symbol of national unity, to beware of those

who may be seeking to use it to achieve selfish and divise ends.

It said the statement credited to the Nigerian Army Director, Army Public

Relations, Brig-Gen. Olajide Olaleye, at a press conference in Abuja on

Tuesday, that the Army is not in possession of Gen. Buhari's certificates,

is in direct conflict with what he said on Jan. 4th 2015 on the same

issue.
”In an interview with the Punch on Jan. 4th 2015, Brig.-Gen. Olaleye said:

'Every serving and retired Army officer has at least a copy of his

certficates and credentials kept in the Nigerian Army while that same

serving and retired officer has copies of those same certificates and

credentials'.
”Is Brig.-Gen. Olaleye now saying that he did not make that statement? If

he did, what has happened between then and now to make him to recant? It

will be interesting to know what has transpired between then and now,” APC

said.
But more worrisome, the party said, is the statement credited to

Brig.-Gen. Olaleye that there was no evidence that the certificates of all

those who joined the army in the early 1960s were verified by the

selection board.
”Is he now saying that all those who were commissioned into the officer

cadres in the 1960s did not have their certificates verified? Does this

not confirm what we said that in trying to destroy Gen. Buhari, the PDP

and the Jonathan Administration will end up destroying the army as an

institution? Or is it only Gen. Buhari that was commissioned into the army

in the 1960s,” it said.
The party also quoted Gen. Buhari as saying in an affidavit on 24/11/2014

that ”All my academic qualifications documents as filled in my

presidential form, President APC/001/2015 are currently with the Secretary

Military Board as at the time of this affidavit.”
”Those who are behind the latest controversy should now tell Nigerians

what happened to Gen. Buhari's certificates between the time of his

affidavit and now,” it said.
APC said in any case, even if the Army now says it does not have the

certificates of Gen. Buhari, he is still very qualified to run for the

country's highest office, as stipulated by the Constitution of the Federal

Republic of Nigeria.
The party quoted Section 131 (d) of the Constitution: ”A person shall be

qualified for election to the office of President if he has been educated

up to at least School Certificate level or its equivalent”

APC said the meaning and interpretation of ”School Certificate level or

its equivalent can be found in the Constitution under part IV, Section

318. In that Section, a ”School Certificate or ot equivalent” is defined

quite succinctly thus:
(a) A Secondary School Certificate or its equivalent, Grade II Teacher's

Certificate, the City and Guilds Certificate; or
(b) Education up to Secondary School Certificate Level; or

(c) Primary Six School Leaving Certificate or its equivalent.

The party said since Brig.-Gen. Olaleye has now confirmed that Gen. Buhari

indeed applied to join the Army from form six, that the principal of the

school he attended even attested to his suitability, and that the form he

filled contained his Secondary School Certificate results, there is no

scintilla of doubt about his qualification to run for president as

stipulated by the Constitution.
”However, we know that the PDP and the Jonathan Administration have

constituted themselves into a court of law and will like nothing more than

the disqualification of our candidate so they will face no challenge in

next month's election. This is wishful thinking,” it said.

APC said the PDP and the Jonathan Administration should expend their

energy on how to revive their floundering campaign instead of seeking the

disqualification of its (APC) candidate.
On the contradictions in the statements credited to the Army spokesman,

the party said: ”It is true that our once globally-respected military has

now been made comatose by the PDP-led Federal Government, but we believe

things have not reached the level where the same military will be engaging

in actions that amount to self destruction, just to satisfy some political

interests.
”We believe things have not reached a level where we, as a nation, will

now be giving the impression that a man who rose to become a Major-General

in the Nigerian Army does not have requisite qualifications?

”What really is happening in our country if some politicians have now

decided to engage in an action that will amount to dragging the military

into politics, dividing an institution that is a symbol of national unity,

trivializing the service of those who fought to keep Nigeria one and

ridiculing the same country it is supposed to be ruling?

”We have said it before and will like to repeat: Enough is enough about

this distraction orchestrated by the PDP and the Jonathan Administration

whose electioneering campaign for next month's polls has suffered a train

wreck,” the party said
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