I was on my way to work on the morning of Monday,
January 26, when my friend, Sodiq Alabi, sent me a
Facebook message asking me how to contact THISDAY
newspapers since I am more familiar with newspaper
houses as a regular contributor to issues in national
dailies.
Sodiq included in the message a web link to an article in
THISDAY newspaper with the title, “Cambridge University:
Hausa Language Not Offered in 1961 Exams”. I opened
the article to see these lines:
“The controversy over the secondary school results of
the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential
candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari, continues as the
University of Cambridge has said that Hausa Language,
which is one of the subjects listed by Buhari, was not
offered in its examinations in 1961.
“The disclosure was contained in a statement from the
office of the Director of the PDP Presidential Campaign
Organisation claiming it came through an e-mail dated
Thursday, January 22, 2015 from the institution’s
Archives Delivery Service Officer, Jacky Emerson, to one
SODIQ ALABI who requested for confirmation if the
examination body offered Hausa Language in the 1961
West African Certificate Examination it organised.
“Emerson, in his one-sentence reply, said: “According to
the Regulations for 1961, African Language papers,
including those for Hausa, WERE NOT included for West
African School Certificate.”
“This development may have further cast doubts on the
certificate which is purported to be General Buhari’s. He
is yet to react to the assertion by the Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential Campaign
Organisation that the document (the published
certificate) was forged and illegally
procured.” (Capitalizations mine)
Sodiq was shocked such falsehood was attributed to him
by Mr. Femi Fani-Kayode and wanted to contact the
Editor of THISDAY for such wicked misrepresentation.
Sodiq Alabi ( sodiqalabi@hotmail.com ) had written an
email to Cambridge Assessment, the brand name of
University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicates,
on January 22, 2015, 13.31 hours, to confirm whether
Hausa was truly offered by it in 1961 examinations. By
4.10pm same day, Jacky Emerson (archives@
cambridgeassessment.org.uk), Archive Services Delivery
officer of Cambridge Assessment, replied thus: “Dear
Sodiq Alabi, According to the Regulations of 1961,
African Language papers, WERE SET for West Africa
School Certificate.”
A screenshot of this email exchange was shared with us
on Facebook by Sodiq and it went viral on the internet.
The email triggered other Nigerians to send emails to
Cambridge Assessment for independent confirmation and
the school came out with a release on its website the
next day. In the release titled, “Statement in response to
Nigerian Presidential election enquiries”, the school
stated, “The organisation also confirmed that according
to the Regulations for 1961, African Language papers,
including those for Hausa WERE SET for the West African
School Certificate.” Here is the link to the Cambridge
Assessment website where this confirmation was
published: http://cambridgeassessment.org.uk/news/
statement-in-response-to-nigerian-presidential-election-
enquiries/
.
It is however surprising that Femi Fani-Kayode went
ahead to alter the content of Sodiq’s email in his press
statement to, “According to the Regulations for 1961,
African Language papers, including those for Hausa,
WERE NOT included for West African School Certificate.”,
and still quoted the email as the source.
It is very unfortunate that this is the man speaking for
the President’s re-election campaign. How do we believe
every other “fact” he has quoted has not been altered as
well? It is a shame.
It is also very unfortunate that our newspapers have
gone to sleep and investigative journalism is at its lowest
ebb in Nigeria. How will Femi Fani-Kayode not be feeding
newspaper reporters with lies when he knows how lazy
some of our journalists have become? This is not an
advertorial that does not require independent
confirmation. All THISDAY and Daily Post that reported
this Fani-Kayode’s glaring lie needed to do is to seek out
Sodiq or confirm from Cambridge – which had posted a
confirmation statement on conduct of Hausa language in
1961 WASC on its website since January 23, two days
before Fani-Kayode came up with this lie – and ask for
their side of the story.
It is particularly curious that I had, in an earlier article
sent to THISDAY, which was published in its January 25
edition, attached a screenshot of the email from Sodiq to
buttress some other arguments, so THISDAY editors, at
least their OP-ED editor, could not have claimed not to
have seen the original content of Sodiq’s email before
Fani-Kayode’s alteration.
This is not the first time President Jonathan’s men are
forging or altering documents to demonize anyone
perceived as the President’s “enemy”. His New Media
Assistant, Reno Omokri, was also busted in February last
year, when he hid under a pseudonym, Wendel Simlin, to
send false but damaging reports to newspapers to
demonize the then just suspended Governor Lamido
Sanusi of Central Bank. A dig into the source of the
computer used in typing the document showed it was a
certain Reno Omokri that authored it!
How lowly can people get?

I just like fact that Nigerians are very funny.
I have learnt a lot from the Buhari certificate monomania. Since it happened, I started looking for all my certificates and school report cards. Infact I have safely kept the receipt for my jamb form, lecture notes, textbooks, photos even my secondary school P.T.A receipts and photocopy of my transfer form too, who knowns if anybody may request for it. If someone who schooled before independence can be asked to present his certificate, then who am I? If you are lucky enough to still have your secondary school uniform and sandal please, keep it because I still have mine right from my kindergarten days. Who knows any clueless person can ask for it? So currently, I'm searching for the sharpener and 2Anotebook I used in Pry 1....... hope u've started looking for yours as well

smithsydny:
I just like fact that Nigerians are very funny.
I have learnt a lot from the Buhari certificate monomania. Since it happened, I started looking for all my certificates and school report cards. Infact I have safely kept the receipt for my jamb form, lecture notes, textbooks, photos even my secondary school P.T.A receipts and photocopy of my transfer form too, who knowns if anybody may request for it. If someone who schooled before independence can be asked to present his certificate, then who am I? If you are lucky enough to still have your secondary school uniform and sandal please, keep it because I still have mine right from my kindergarten days. Who knows any clueless person can ask for it? So currently, I'm searching for the sharpener and 2Anotebook I used in Pry 1....... hope u've started looking for yours as well

I agree with you... I even kept my screening forms into the university. and my secondary school badge

smithsydny:
I just like fact that Nigerians are very funny.
I have learnt a lot from the Buhari certificate monomania. Since it happened, I started looking for all my certificates and school report cards. Infact I have safely kept the receipt for my jamb form, lecture notes, textbooks, photos even my secondary school P.T.A receipts and photocopy of my transfer form too, who knowns if anybody may request for it. If someone who schooled before independence can be asked to present his certificate, then who am I? If you are lucky enough to still have your secondary school uniform and sandal please, keep it because I still have mine right from my kindergarten days. Who knows any clueless person can ask for it? So currently, I'm searching for the sharpener and 2Anotebook I used in Pry 1....... hope u've started looking for yours as well

This certificate saga is getting more and more interesting. Now I have even started looking for the bank tellers I used to pay my fees in Primary school.

But isn't it a shame that a man like Buhari with all the hyped status that wants to rule a country as large as Nigeria cannot take the bull by the horn and put this issue to rest.

He promised to make a public statement on the issue but ended up creating more controversy.

A man that cannot handle such issue is not fit to rule us.

Am writing down the names of my primary and secondary school teachers. looking for my exam question papers.

That is to tell you how callous FFK is ! Very stupid and uncultured.

heywhytech1:
That is to tell you how callous FFK is ! Very stupid and uncultured.

.
We really need a mental change