President Muhammadu Buhari reacting to controversy trailing his eligibility to contest the 2019 presidential election said he would not have joined the army if he had not sat for the West African School Certificate (WASC)
The President said this on Friday after Iyi Uwadiale, registrar of the West African Examination Council (WAEC), presented him with a re-issued certificate at the presidential villa in Abuja.
The document showed that Buhari enrolled for the exams in 1961.
Buhari has been under pressure following his failure to submit his credentials to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ahead of the 2019 elections.
Buhari had said his WASC certificate was with the military board but the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said the president was being economic with the truth, seeking his disqualification from the race.
After collecting the re-issued certificate from WAEC, Buhari said it was his certificate that enabled him to attend the Defence Services Staff College in India and the United States Army War College.
”My colleagues and I who spent close to nine years in boarding school both in primary and secondary, including Gen. Musa Yar’Adua, when we intended to join the military we had to take a military examination,” Buhari said.
”We were examined in three subjects, English, Mathematics and General Knowledge because English is the language for general instruction throughout the country because of our colonial heritage.
”Mathematics in the military was necessary, coupled with Geography. We were trained how to be dropped off in the bush, given only a pair of compass and since we were not astronomers, you have to learn to find your way, calculate, using the Pythagoras Theorem and others to work out your position.”
On his part, Uwadiae said the council could issue attestations to those who have lost their certificates.
”We don’t issue certificates twice but we can issue attestations or duplicate copy of the certificate. We also have what we refer to as confirmation; usually, universities were using this in those days when Information Technology was not in vogue,” the registrar said.
”Whoever sat for WASC exams in whatever year, we have the records in our database, and Mr President, we have the records of the examinations you sat in 1961.”
Buhari had since retired as a major-general in the Nigeria Army.
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