Chicago State University Confirms Tinubu’s Degree, Says No Further Information Without Court Order
President Bola Tinubu’s academic records have been confirmed by the Chicago State University (CSU), where he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 1979.
The university issued a statement on Thursday to CBS News, a division of the American television and radio service CBS, saying that Tinubu was a former CSU student and that it was confident in the veracity and integrity of its records regarding his graduation.
However, the university also said that it could not provide any further information without consent or a court order, citing the federal law known as FERPA (the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) that protects the privacy of student records and limits what an institution can release.
The statement came after a U.S. federal court adjourned ruling on a subpoena application for Tinubu’s records from the university.
The application was filed by Atiku Abubakar, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 presidential election, who challenged Tinubu’s election victory on the grounds that he submitted fake records to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Atiku alleged that the diploma certificate Tinubu submitted to INEC was not authentic and that it was grounds to nullify his election. Tinubu submitted the certificate as part of his final eligibility paperwork in June 2022.
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois heard the case on Tuesday, but did not reach a decision. The CSU lawyer, Michael Hayes, told the judge that the school was not in a position to confirm or deny the authenticity of Tinubu’s certificate.
He said, “Is the diploma authentic or is it a forgery? My client can’t answer yes to either of those questions.”
The judge, Jeffrey Gilbert, asked the CSU lawyer to provide more information on why the school could not verify Tinubu’s certificate. He also asked Atiku’s lawyer, Mike Ozekhome, to explain why he needed Tinubu’s records from CSU and not from INEC. He adjourned the case to a later date.
In its statement, the CSU said that it was not a party to the Nigerian legal proceedings that spurred the request for Tinubu’s academic records. It said that a U.S. federal judge will determine whether the university will provide further requested information.
The statement also said that the university’s response to the request for Tinubu’s academic records has been entirely consistent with its practices, policies and federal law. It said that it would respond in exactly the same manner for any request for any student information by a third party.
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