A major twist has emerged in the controversy surrounding Nigeria’s Minister of Science and Technology, Uche Geoffrey Nnaji, as court documents reveal that he has admitted the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) never issued him a degree certificate — a revelation that could upend his academic and political credibility.
This startling disclosure, contained in filings before the Federal High Court, Abuja, lends credence to a two-year investigative report by PREMIUM TIMES which had alleged that Mr. Nnaji forged the credentials he submitted to President Bola Tinubu and the Nigerian Senate during his ministerial screening and appointment in 2023.
Background of the Allegations
The controversy dates back to July 2023, when President Tinubu nominated Mr. Nnaji among the first batch of 28 ministers forwarded to the Senate barely two months after assuming office on 29 May 2023.
Since then, allegations of certificate forgery have trailed the minister. Critics maintained that he neither completed his studies at UNN nor legitimately obtained the Bachelor’s degree and National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificate presented to the Presidency, the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), the State Security Service (SSS), and the Senate.
For over a year, Mr. Nnaji had refused to publicly address the allegations — until now. His own court affidavit has finally confirmed that UNN never issued him any degree certificate.
Inside the Court Filings
The revelation surfaced in a case filed by Mr. Nnaji against the Minister of Education, the National Universities Commission (NUC), the University of Nigeria, its Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Simon Ortuanya, the Registrar, a former Acting Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Oguejiofor Ujam, and the Senate of the University.
In the suit before Justice Hauwa Yilwa, Mr. Nnaji sought several orders — including leave to issue prerogative writs prohibiting UNN and its officials from “tampering with” his academic records and a mandamus compelling the university to release his transcript. He also requested that the Minister of Education and the NUC exercise their supervisory powers to compel compliance by UNN.
Additionally, he prayed the court for an interim injunction to restrain the university from altering or disclosing his academic information pending determination of the case.
On 22 September 2025, Justice Yilwa granted three of his prayers but declined to issue any injunctive order against the defendants. The matter was adjourned to 6 October for further hearing.
A Stunning Admission
In paragraphs 12 and 13 of his 34-paragraph verifying affidavit supporting the motion, Mr. Nnaji made a stunning confession — acknowledging that he never collected a degree certificate from UNN.
In paragraph 12, he wrote:
“That the University admitted me in 1981 to study Microbiology/Biochemistry, and that I completed the programme and graduated in 1985.”
In the certificate, his name was wrongly spelt
But paragraph 13 contained the bombshell:
“That even though I am yet to collect my certificate from the 3rd Defendant (UNN), due largely to the non-cooperative attitude of the 3rd–5th Defendants (UNN, its Vice-Chancellor, and Registrar), the 3rd Defendant issued a letter dated 21st December 2023 to People’s Gazette (attention: Samuel Ogundipe) which stated amongst other things as follows:
‘This is to confirm that Geoffrey Uchechukwu Nnaji, with registration number 1981/30725, was admitted in 1981 to study Microbiology/Biochemistry at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Mr Geoffrey Uchechukwu Nnaji graduated from the University of Nigeria in July 1985 with a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology/Biochemistry, Second Class (Hons.) Lower Division.’”
The referenced letter was signed by UNN Registrar, Celine Nnebedum, and addressed to People’s Gazette in response to a media inquiry.
UNN Withdraws Earlier Claim
However, the university later retracted that confirmation. In a subsequent correspondence to the Public Complaints Commission (PCC) in May 2025, Mrs. Nnebedum stated that after a thorough search of the 1985 graduation records, Mr. Nnaji’s name was not found.
The university’s Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Simon Ortuanya, also reinforced that position in a letter dated 3 October 2025, addressed to PREMIUM TIMES, stating unequivocally that Mr. Nnaji did not complete his programme and was never awarded any degree by UNN.
The Legal and Political Fallout
By acknowledging in a sworn affidavit that UNN never issued him a degree certificate, Mr. Nnaji has inadvertently validated the long-standing forgery allegations surrounding his credentials — including the degree and NYSC certificates he presented in 2023 for his ministerial nomination.
The admission raises profound legal and ethical questions:
If the University of Nigeria never issued him a certificate, where did the document he presented originate from? And if he never obtained a valid degree, how was he able to qualify for and complete the NYSC programme?
1. Served for 13 months
2. Started serving in April before allegedly finishing his degree in July
Political analysts warn that the fallout could be significant — not only for Mr. Nnaji but also for the Tinubu administration, which has repeatedly faced scrutiny over the academic authenticity of some top officials.
As the court prepares to resume hearing on October 6, Nigerians and transparency advocates are watching closely to see whether this self-admission will trigger further investigation — or official silence.
