Former Nigeria Head of State and Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Major General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), may face hitches ahead of contesting in the forthcoming Presidential election, going by the discrepancies surrounding the whereabouts of original copies of his academic certificates.

Recall that Buhari and other candidates are undergoing screening by INEC Verification Committee and the electoral body is yet to display Buhari’s academic qualifications, like that of other candidates at the headquarters of INEC in Abuja.

Despite Buhari’s claims that all his academic credentials were with the Military Board, the Army have denied keeping the certificates of serving or retired officer or soldier.

In the affidavit, which he deposed to at a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Buhari had insisted that all his certificates were with the Secretary, Military Board.

The affidavit dated November 24, 2014, was stamped and received by INEC on December 18 2014.

“I am the above-named person and deponent to this affidavit therein. All my academic qualifications documents as filled in my presidential form, President APC/001/2015, are currently with the Secretary, Military Board as of the time of presenting this affidavit. The affidavit is made in good faith and for record purpose,” Buhari had stated.

But the Military, according to dependale sources has said: ‘’The Army can not keep anybody’s original certificate because it is the personal property of the owner.’’ 

“The original certificate of any officer or soldier is only needed at the point of entry into the service either as a cadet officer entering the Nigerian Defence Academy, or the recruitment officers when interviewing recruits to be sent to the depot for training. That is so, because they are needed to verify what were in the photocopies supplied by them or from the necessary examining bodies.”