The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, has defended President Bola Tinubu’s academic qualifications, saying he lived in Chicago, United States, for almost 30 years and personally met several people who attended Chicago State University alongside the President.
Alausa made the statement on Tuesday night during an interview on Channels Television, where he addressed the controversy surrounding Tinubu’s educational background and academic records.
The minister maintained that Tinubu graduated from Chicago State University with a first-class degree in Accounting in 1979. He said his long stay in Chicago gave him considerable familiarity with the institution, which he claimed to have visited several times.
According to Alausa, he had personally met many people who studied with the President at the university, dismissing suggestions that Tinubu did not attend the institution.
When the interviewer asked whether he had met any of Tinubu’s former classmates, the minister responded that he had met several of them.
Alausa also reaffirmed that Tinubu graduated with first-class honours in Accounting, describing the President as a genius and insisting that there should be no question about his intellectual ability.
Beyond the President’s academic qualifications, the education minister defended Tinubu’s performance in office, arguing that his administration had moved Nigeria from a struggling economy towards growth since assuming power.
However, when the interviewer raised concerns about the country’s high number of out-of-school children and widespread poverty, Alausa maintained that attention should be given to the achievements of the President’s administration.
The minister’s comments come amid renewed discussions about Tinubu’s academic credentials, a controversy that has remained a major political issue since the build-up to the 2023 general elections.
The controversy began when opposition parties questioned discrepancies and omissions in the academic records submitted by Tinubu to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The matter later resulted in legal proceedings in the United States after former Vice President Atiku Abubakar approached a US court seeking an order compelling Chicago State University to release Tinubu’s academic records.
Following the court proceedings, the university released documents confirming that Tinubu attended the institution and graduated in 1979. The university’s registrar also submitted an affidavit before the US court confirming the President’s attendance and graduation.
The issue subsequently featured prominently in the 2023 presidential election litigation in Nigeria, with the Supreme Court eventually upholding Tinubu’s election.
However, the debate resurfaced in August 2026 after INEC began displaying Form EC9 submitted by presidential aspirants ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Tinubu’s form again listed his university qualification without providing details of his primary and secondary education, triggering fresh reactions from opposition figures, social media users and political commentators.
Despite the renewed controversy, Alausa insisted that the President’s academic record from Chicago State University was genuine, adding that his personal interactions with people who studied alongside Tinubu further strengthened his position.
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