Mr Godwin Obaseki, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the September 10, 2016 Edo State governorship election, has heaved a sigh of relief as he disclosed that he has found the originals of his missing academic certificates in the United States.
However, speaking on Wednesday at an interactive session organised by Civil Society Organisations for governorship candidates in Edo State, Obaseki said the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, were jittery of his academic qualifications because they don’t have the quality of resume he possesses.
It would be recalled that the state chapter of the PDP had on Monday expressed worries over an affidavit sworn to by Obaseki at an Abuja High Court stating that he lost his academic qualifications while moving his office from one place to another, saying the reasons adduced by Obaseki were flimsy and unconvincing.
He said, “I have found them. The truth is that I have not had any reason to look for them in the last 25 years. I know that I kept them somewhere in a safe box and I had photocopies.
“When I needed them for the exercise, I couldn’t find them, so I swore to an affidavit that I can’t find the originals. I said I can’t find them; here are the photocopies.
“I took the photocopies to the institutions that issued them and they certified the photocopies. So when the whole controversy started raging, my cousin called me from New York and said, ‘but your originals are here.’ I said please send them to me now.”
Obaseki, who was the only governorship candidate that attended the interactive session, used the opportunity to highlight his programmes, promising to industrialize Edo State by attracting investors to the state, redesign the academic curriculum by creating more technical schools and focusing on the non-oil sector.
He said, “I have dealt with investors in the last 19 years of my life and I know how they think. Without security and manpower, they won’t come. We will provide these basics. I have the capacity, training and wherewithal to develop Edo State.”
Speaking during the session, the president of the Network of Civil Societies of Nigeria (NOCSON) in Edo State, Comrade Abraham Oviawe, noted that governance in the 21st century should not focus on road construction and other primary responsibilities of government, but a leadership that thinks outside of the box to create jobs for unemployed youths.
He stated that civil society orgaisations in Edo State were prepared to raise the bar by engaging and monitoring political leaders in every aspect of governance from policy formulation to execution.
