UNN disowns Uche Nnaji, Tinubu’s minister’s degree certificate – Report 

The University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), has disowned the degree certificate paraded by Uche Geoffrey Nnaji, Nigeria’s Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, saying he never graduated from the institution, according to a report by Premium Times.

According to the report, the revelation follows a two-year investigation, which found that both the Bachelor of Science degree in biochemistry and microbiology and the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificate presented by the minister are counterfeit.

Mr Nnaji has faced allegations of certificate forgery since July 2023, when President Bola Tinubu nominated him as one of the first 28 ministers in his cabinet. Critics insisted he did not complete his studies at UNN and had never participated in the NYSC scheme.

In a letter dated 2 October 2025, UNN Vice Chancellor, Professor Simon U. Ortuanya, confirmed those suspicions, according to the report.

“We can confirm that Mr Geoffrey Uchechukwu Nnaji, with Matriculation Number 1981/30725, was admitted by the University of Nigeria, Nsukka in 1981,” the letter read. “From every available record, we are unable to confirm that Mr Nnaji graduated in July 1985, as there are no records of his completion of study. The University DID NOT and consequently COULD NOT have issued the purported certificate.”

The university’s statement was in response to a Freedom of Information (FoI) request by the newspaper and reinforced an earlier admission by its registrar to the Public Complaints Commission in May 2025 that Nnaji’s name was missing from the 1985 graduation roll.

A questionable résumé

At his Senate confirmation hearing on 1 August 2023, Mr Nnaji told lawmakers he graduated from UNN in 1985 and completed his NYSC in Jos the following year. His résumé was repeated at his inauguration later that month, when presidential spokesman Ajuri Ngelale publicly read it out.

But a closer look at the documents he submitted to the Senate quickly raised suspicions.

The newspaper said it obtained copies of his credentials from lawmakers and subjected them to forensic review. Both the degree and NYSC certificates showed glaring inconsistencies.

Forensic flaws

The NYSC certificate, dated 15 May 1986, carried the signature of Colonel Animashaun Braimoh, who did not become director of the corps until 1988. At the time the document was supposedly issued, the NYSC was led by Colonel Edet Akpan, the report said.

It also bore the title “National Director,” a designation that did not exist in 1986. The head of the corps was called “Director” until the early 1990s.

The certificate number, A231309, was equally suspicious. Alphabets were not introduced into NYSC certificate numbering until years later. Certificates from the 1980s carried only six digits, according to the report.

Perhaps most striking was the duration of service: the certificate claimed Nnaji served from April 1985 to May 1986, a 13-month period. NYSC has always been a 12-month programme.

The degree certificate was no less dubious. While it looked genuine on the surface, it carried a graduation date of July 1985. Yet the NYSC document claimed he began service in April of that year, three months before finishing university — an impossibility. His first name was also misspelt as “Geoffery” instead of “Geoffrey.”

The trail at UNN and NYSC

The newspaper said its reporters took the investigation further.

At NYSC headquarters, senior officials confirmed after checking internal records that no certificate had ever been issued to Mr Nnaji. The corps later responded formally to a September 2023 inquiry, saying it had no record of his service.

At UNN, staff members recalled that he was admitted in the 1981/82 academic session but struggled academically, failing key courses such as Virology (MCB 431AB). After repeated absences from resit opportunities, the university advised him to withdraw.

Reporters sighted a letter he wrote to the institution as late as May 1986, pleading for another chance to retake an outstanding terminal course. His request was rejected.

An official convocation booklet for the 1985 graduation ceremony, obtained by Premium Times confirmed he was not among that year’s graduates.