At last, Katsina College releases Buhari’s WASC results

Buhari's photograph with classmates and staff of Provincial Secondary School, Katsina, 1961

The controversies surrounding the whereabouts of the West African School Certificate Examinations of the All Progressives Congress, APC, presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari, might have finally been laid to rest as the Government College, formerly Provincial Secondary School, Katsina today confirmed that Buhari graduated from the school in 1961.

The results, obtained exclusively by PREMIUM TIMES Wednesday, confirm Mr. Buhari’s claim that he undertook the University of Cambridge West African School Certificate Examinations and obtained five credits in English Language, Geography, Hausa Language, History, and Health Science.

PREMIUM TIMES obtained the computer printout from Cambridge University as well as a statement of result, signed by the current principal of Katsina College, dated January 21, 2015.

The results show that Mr. Buhari, a former military head of state, failed in Mathematics and Woodwork, and had a pass in Literature in English.

The examination centre number was 8280 while Mr. Buhari’s candidate number was 002.

The statement of results is printed on the letter head paper of the Katsina State Ministry of Education, and it shows that the examination took place in 1961.

The Cambridge print out also shows the result of 17 other candidates at the centre, including Shehu Yar’adua, a former Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters.

Controversy over Mr. Buhari’s result escalated Tuesday after the Nigerian Army, which had earlier admitted to having a copies of his certificate, reversed itself saying it could not even attest to the details listed in his records.

The spokesperson of the Army, Olajide Laleye, said “Neither the original copy, certified true copy (CTC) nor statement of result of Major-.Gen. Mohammadu Buhari‘s WASC result is in his personal file.”

He said while it is the practice in the Nigerian Army that before candidates are shortlisted for commissioning into the officers’ cadre of the service, the selection board verifies the original copies of credentials as presented, “There is no available record to show that this process was followed in the 1960s.”

The military’s comments came after the retired general had said that his lost copies of results were with the Army, an explanation he gave ahead of elections February 14.