By Obinna Uballa
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has condemned the resignation of Uche Nnaji, erstwhile Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, describing it as “an attempt to whitewash yet another scandal” under President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Nnaji resigned on Tuesday after an investigation by Premium Times alleged that he submitted forged academic and NYSC certificates during his Senate screening in 2023. Both the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), and the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) reportedly disowned the documents.
In a post on X Wednesday, Atiku, who was the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate in 2023, argued that Nnaji should have been dismissed and prosecuted, not allowed to “quietly exit through the backdoor.”
“Tuesday’s resignation of Uche Nnaji has once again brought to light the deep moral crisis in this government,” Atiku wrote. “What should ordinarily be a matter of national shame is now being disguised as a ‘voluntary resignation’ – an attempt to whitewash yet another scandal that typifies the forgery-ridden character of this government.
“Let the truth be told: Nnaji should not have been allowed the courtesy of resignation. He should have been summarily dismissed and prosecuted for deceit and falsification. By permitting him to quietly exit through the backdoor, the Tinubu government has again demonstrated that it is an assembly of forgers, impostors, and morally bankrupt individuals masquerading as public servants.”
Atiku also criticised the Department of State Services (DSS), accusing it of double standards. He noted that while the agency screened out former Kaduna governor Nasir el-Rufai over “security concerns,” it cleared Nnaji despite glaring discrepancies in his credentials.
The PDP leader further linked the scandal to what he described as a recurring pattern of deceit at the heart of the Tinubu administration, citing past controversies surrounding the President’s own academic and identity records.
Atiku demanded an independent probe into the credentials of all Federal Executive Council members, including the President. “Until this cleansing is done, Nigeria will continue to sink deeper into moral decay, economic ruin, and global embarrassment,” he warned.
