Amid CSU certificate saga, Tinubu’s ‘classmate’ surfaces

Amid controversies surrounding the Chicago State University record of President Bola Tinubu, a public analyst Durojaiye Ogunsanya, claims that he was a classmate of President Bola Tinubu at the institution.

Making this disclosure during a chat with TVC, Mr Ogunsanya confirmed that he graduated alongside Tinubu in 1979 from the department of accounting and business administration.

His comments came as the academic record of President Bola Tinubu continues to spark controversies.

In a bid to unseat President Tinubu, opposition political parties have continued to raise questions over the authenticity of the academic record and university certificate presented by the president in the buildup to the 2023 presidential election.

Reports detailed that Tinubu’s academic records show that he graduated from CSU in 1979 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration, accounting, and management.

There are however claims that the Tinubu who attended CSU is different from the current president of Nigeria.

PoliticsNow recalls that Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), filed a suit asking the US district court to subpoena CSU over Tinubu’s academic files.

Responding to controversies surrounding Mr Tinubu’s academic record, Mr Ogunsanya said: “We were in the same department, class, and college,” he said.

“We met in school at Chicago State University (CSU) and we were in the same department — college of accounting, business administration — with a major in accounting.

“We graduated together. He did attend the Chicago State University and he graduated in 1979 as I did. I’m here to testify that he did attend the university and he was a good student.

“People were being mischievous in the first place because he was a governor for eight years, he worked for Mobil for several years and you are contesting that he did not go to university. How is that possible?

“I can’t imagine how that is possible. Sometimes, the president might be embellished but that does not mean he did not attend university.”

Speaking further, Ogunsanya said Tinubu was elected as the president of the accounting student club at CSU between 1978/1979.

He added that colleagues often mocked Tinubu for his “deep” Nigerian accent in the US.