I’m distressed by Tinubu’s identity crisis, CSU certificate, refusal to reveal his real name, parents: Obi

PEOPLES GAZETTE

FULL TEXT OF PETER OBI’S PRESS CONFERENCE

Having followed the prolonged identity crisis that recently played out in the American Court System and the controversy surrounding the authenticity of the Chicago State University credentials of Chief Bola Ahmed Tinubu, I must confess that I am distressed as a Nigerian.

In addition to the barrage of media frenzy that the matter has triggered at home and abroad, I have had the unwholesome burden of responding to embarrassing questions about Nigeria’s overall credibility as a nation to privileged audiences & individuals both at home and abroad in different parts of the world where I have traveled lately.

To outsiders, the entire CSU matter as well as Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s many  lingering identity question marks has further worsened Nigeria’s less-than-glorious image internationally. Uninformed outsiders now see every other Nigerian as a potential fraudster, certain forger, or identity thief. The controversy is unnecessary just as the implicit global embarrassment could have been avoided.

In my opinion, Chief Bola Tinubu should have saved the nation and himself from this protracted embarrassment & undue anxiety. Even this late in the day, however, he still owes the nation and the world a simple debt of obligation that only he can discharge. I call on him to immediately & personally mount the rostrum of his present high office to perform a simple task once and for all time. He should re-introduce himself to the nation he governs and to the world for the avoidance of further doubt. He should let the world know his name, nationality his place of birth, his parentage, the primary and secondary schools he attended with dates as well as the actual universities he attended and certificates obtained. He should indicate clearly where & when he did his National Youth Service. In addition, if at any time he has had a change of name, he should clearly state so and the circumstances. That, in itself, is no crime. This simple task should take no more than a few minutes. It requires no affidavits, prolonged court processes, spokespersons, agents, or surrogates. This task is one that only Chief Bola Tinubu himself through a direct personal statement can perform. He must perform this task urgently in order to lay to rest, once and for the last time, the many lingering doubts & valid speculations about his true identity

A leader can’t outsource a clear unambiguous personal statement about his identity to political surrogates, social spokespersons, lawyers, or any other persons no matter how highly placed. A matter of the personal identity of a leader is too sensitive and central to the functions of the office he currently occupies to be tried with, outsourced, or disguised under the cloak of officialdom. It is also about integrity, morality, values & the rule of law that denies the character of the Nation and its people. In his present capacity as a leader of a nation of over  200M Nigerians, his true identity is a matter of grave national and international interest.