The Labour Party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 general election, Peter Obi, has urged for strict penalties against politicians found guilty of presenting forged academic certificates.
In a post shared on his verified X handle on Monday, Obi stressed that Nigeria must put an end to the culture where “forgery and deceit are rewarded with power,” insisting that genuine leadership should be built on truth and integrity.
The former Anambra State governor criticised the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for failing to adequately verify candidates’ academic credentials before elections, warning that such negligence erodes the moral foundation of public service.
The danger of making crime a norm.
Whenever I talk about Nigeria being a crime scene, those who are part of the criminality and their hirelings will quickly start their noise-making, attacking and blackmailing me. But how do you tell people that those whose integrity, character…
— Peter Obi (@PeterObi) October 6, 2025
“How do you tell young Nigerians to be honest when those they should look up to are dishonest?” Obi asked, describing certificate forgery as a grave criminal offence that attracts severe punishment in other countries.
With the 2027 elections approaching, Obi urged INEC to revisit past allegations of forgery and false claims, while advocating amendments to electoral laws that would compel all candidates — including incumbents — to submit their academic documents to the commission immediately after party primaries, at least six months before elections.
“We must deal with certificate forgery holistically with the seriousness it deserves. Criminal offences should not be dismissed as a mere procedural matter,” he said. “True leadership must begin with truth.”