Former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to thoroughly verify the certificates submitted by candidates seeking public office to prevent individuals with questionable backgrounds from assuming leadership positions.
Obi made the call in a post on his verified X handle on Monday, expressing concern over the growing number of public office holders allegedly parading forged certificates backed by fraudulent affidavits.
He noted that many such individuals “scaled through” INEC, security, and Senate screenings during the 2023 elections, despite submitting forged documents.
The former Anambra State governor decried the normalization of corruption in Nigeria, lamenting that those expected to serve as models of integrity have become contributors to national decay.
“How do you tell people that those whose integrity, character, and behaviour are supposed to be exemplary and emulated in society have become the very source of the nation’s decay?
How do you tell young Nigerians to be honest and upright when those they are supposed to emulate are the least to be emulated because they are criminals and dishonest?” he wrote.
Obi further faulted INEC for failing to investigate certificate forgery and related offences after elections, warning that overlooking such acts only deepens Nigeria’s leadership crisis.