Public policy analyst Deyemi Saka has defended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s academic qualifications, urging Nigerians to focus on governance and constitutional requirements rather than recurring debates over educational records.
Speaking during an interview aired on the official Arise News YouTube channel on Sunday, August 2, 2026, Saka said the Constitution sets the minimum qualifications for anyone seeking the presidency and that the key issue is whether a candidate meets those legal requirements.
“The President said he graduated from Chicago State University in 1979; you can enroll in a university without a secondary school education,” Saka said.
He argued that some universities, particularly in the United States during the 1970s, admitted students through alternative pathways that did not necessarily require conventional secondary school qualifications. According to Saka, the focus should be on whether a university degree is authentic and verifiable rather than the route through which admission was obtained.
The analyst also called for constitutional amendments to provide clearer educational requirements for elective offices, saying this would reduce disputes over candidates’ qualifications and allow greater attention to governance, public accountability and policy performance instead of prolonged controversies over academic records.
