A panel set up by the Federal Government to investigate an allegation that the immediate past Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Uche Nnaji, forged his University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN) degree certificate has confirmed the allegation against the former minister to be true.
An exclusive report by an online publication, PREMIUM TIMES, said the investigative panel in its findings discovered that the former minister indeed forged his university certificate.
The seven-member panel was constituted on 23 November 2025 in response to Mr Nnaji’s petition to the education minister, Dr Tunji Alausa, following an investigation published by PREMIUM TIMES in October last year, which revealed that the then-minister forged his degree and NYSC certificates.
The panel submitted its detailed report to the education minister in December 2025.
In the petition dated 14 October 2025, Mr Nnaji alleged unethical disclosure, document tampering, and political manipulation of his academic records by senior officials of UNN.
He also accused the UNN Vice-Chancellor, Simon Ortuanya, and a former Acting Vice-Chancellor of the institution, Oguejiofor Ujam, of “issuing forged or unauthorised correspondence, improperly accessing his academic file, and facilitating media publications that misrepresented his academic history.”
The probe panel, which was led by the Director of the University Education Department in the ministry, Rakiya Gambo Ilyasu, said it adopted “documentary review, interviews, verification, and technical audit as its methodological approach” to the investigation.
It said during the investigation, members physically visited UNN, engaged with the institution’s officials—including its vice-chancellor and former acting vice-chancellor—and reviewed necessary documents and the university records.
The panel said that during the investigation, it also accessed and inspected Mr Nnaji’s academic files and internal correspondence – including the 2023 and 2025 letters issued by UNN.
It added that it examined UNN’s historic academic records, registry movement logs, Senate lists, convocation archives, electronic access logs, and other relevant documentation.
In the federal government panel report, investigators said they conducted “a thorough review of the Senate-approved graduation list of 1985 and the personal student file” of Mr Nnaji and found, among others, that his name was not in the graduation list in the 1985 set.
The panel said it obtained “several correspondences” dated from 8 November 1985 to 19 May 1986 between Mr Nnaji and the Registry Department of the university regarding his failed course MCB 431 – Virology, which were documented in the former minister’s academic file.
It added that Mr Nnaji, in his handwritten correspondence dated 19 May 1986 and titled “Application to take course, 431AB in September,” explained that he could not write the exam scheduled for 21 April 1986 due to ill health, and attached a supporting medical report.
“The panel was unable to find any record of him (Nnaji) having taken the failed course,” the report further read.
The panel then wondered how Mr Nnaji obtained the “purported certificate of graduation” dated July 1985, which he submitted to President Bola Tinubu for appointment and to the National Assembly for his ministerial confirmation.
Credit: Vanguard (except headline)
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