Atiku’s Lawyer Petitions EU Over Tinubu’s Alleged False Certificates, $460,000 US Forfeiture
Atiku’s Lawyer Petitions EU Over Tinubu’s Alleged False Certificates, $460,000 US Forfeiture
Kalu alleged that President Tinubu had undermined Nigeria’s constitutional order through documents submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The renewed political battle over President Bola Tinubu’s academic records and a decades-old civil forfeiture case in the United States has moved to Europe, with a member of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s legal team submitting a petition to the European Commission alleging threats to Nigeria’s constitutional democracy.
The development was disclosed by Atiku’s media aide, Paul Ibe, in a post on his X handle on Friday.
According to Ibe, Barrister Kalu Kalu submitted the petition in Brussels, Belgium, urging European institutions to examine issues relating to President Tinubu’s alleged certificate forgery, questions surrounding documents submitted for election, and the 1993 civil forfeiture of $460,000 in the United States linked to a drug investigation.
“The issues of President Bola Tinubu’s alleged forgery of certificates and documents and forfeiture of $460,000 linked to heroin trafficking in the United States is not going away anytime soon,” Ibe wrote.
“Here’s Barr. Kalu Kalu submitting a petition to the European Commission in Brussels on this and Tinubu’s threat to our constitutional democracy.”
Kalu
Speaking to journalists after submitting the petition at the European Commission, Kalu alleged that President Tinubu had undermined Nigeria’s constitutional order through documents submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
“I am here at the European Commission to submit a petition to the European Union concerning the subversion of constitutional order in Nigeria where Mr. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has suspended the constitutional order in Nigeria because of his false academic credentials which he submitted to INEC,” Kalu said.
He alleged that the President failed to state the primary and secondary schools he attended in documents submitted to the electoral commission.
“He did not state the primary school and the secondary school he attended in flagrant violation of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, particularly Section 137(1)(j), which says if you have presented a false certificate to INEC, the Independent National Electoral Commission, you will not be qualified to run election,” he said.
Kalu further claimed that Tinubu “submitted false documents, false certificates to INEC,” arguing that this allegedly rendered him ineligible to contest for the presidency.
He also accused the President of using state institutions to remain in office.
“Because they have captured all the paraphernalia of power in Nigeria, he has imposed himself on Nigeria, thereby subverting the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended, which is a mini coup against the people of Nigeria,” he said.
Kalu said the petition asked the European Union to intervene in support of democratic governance in Nigeria.
“So I’m here to submit a petition to the EU to help restore constitutional democracy in Nigeria,” he added.
The petition marks the latest effort by allies of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate in the 2027 election to sustain international attention on controversies surrounding Tinubu’s academic credentials and the U.S. forfeiture case.
Details of the petition itself were not immediately made public, and there was no immediate indication that the European Commission had taken any action in response to its submission.
The Presidency had not responded to Kalu’s latest allegations as of the time of filing this report.
The issues raised by Kalu formed part of legal challenges mounted by Atiku Abubakar and the Peoples Democratic Party following the 2023 presidential election.
Atiku was the PDP presidential candidate in the 2023 election.
Atiku and the PDP challenged Tinubu’s election at the Presidential Election Petition Court and later the Supreme Court, arguing, among other issues, that there were questions surrounding documents submitted by Tinubu to the INEC, including those relating to his attendance at Chicago State University.
The controversy intensified after Atiku obtained records from Chicago State University through legal proceedings in the United States in 2023, contending that discrepancies existed in documents submitted by Tinubu to INEC.
President Tinubu has consistently denied forging any certificate and has maintained that he attended and graduated from Chicago State University.
Nigerian courts subsequently upheld his election, dismissing the petitions challenging his victory.
Another issue repeatedly raised by opposition figures concerns the 1993 civil forfeiture of approximately $460,000 in the United States.
U.S. court records show that the forfeiture arose from a civil proceeding rather than a criminal conviction. Tinubu has denied involvement in drug trafficking, while his supporters have maintained that the matter has long been settled and was extensively litigated during the 2023 election disputes.
