Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the president of Nigeria, has been the subject of intense speculation and controversy over his academic credentials.
Some of his critics and political rivals have demanded that Chicago State University (CSU), where he obtained a BSC in accounting in 1979, should make his transcripts and degree certificate public.
However, the university has refused to do so, citing a federal law that protects the privacy of student education records.
Farooq Kperogi, a Nigerian-American professor and columnist who has been vocal in his criticism of Tinubu, has confirmed that the president did graduate from CSU with honours.
In his latest column titled “Tinubu definitely graduated from Chicago State University,”, he wrote that he contacted some of his friends and colleagues at CSU to verify Tinubu’s graduation status.
He quoted a statement from the registrar’s office that said: “Please be advised that Bola A Tinubu attended Chicago State University from August 1977 [to] June 1979. He was awarded a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with Honors on June 22, 1979. His major was accounting.”
Kperogi also explained why CSU cannot release Tinubu’s academic records to third parties without his written consent.
He said this is because of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) , a federal law that forbids all universities and colleges in the United States from disclosing the academic records of a student to a third party.
He said that he and other university employees who handle students’ grades have to undergo annual training on how to comply with FERPA.
He added that schools can only confirm directory information such as whether or not a student graduated from a school, which CSU has done repeatedly.
Kperogi wondered why Tinubu would agree to have his academic records released to his political opponents, who would only use them to malign him. He said most people would not do that, even if it would satisfy their enemies’ curiosity.
He concluded that FERPA is a legal shield that protects Tinubu’s academic records from public scrutiny.
The controversy over Tinubu’s academic credentials is likely to continue. However, it is important to remember that FERPA is a law that is designed to protect the privacy of student educational records. And in this case, the law prohibits Chicago State University from releasing Tinubu’s records to third parties.
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