I lost my WASC certificate, but I made good result — Gov. Okowa

The vice-presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ifeanyi Okowa, has said that he lost his West Africa School Certificate (WASC) certificate, but that he had a good result.

“Yes, I lost my WASC certificate, but I have the printout from Edo College, Benin City, which clearly stated that I have distinction in all subjects.

“The Higher School Certificate was attached and it has been acknowledged by Edo College and the school put it out there that I made an ‘A’ `B’ `B’,” said Mr Okowa, who is the governor of Delta State.

Okowa’s clarification were contained in a statement issued by the Press department of Delta State Government.

He was said to have made the remarks on Tuesday while speaking to journalists after inspecting projects at the Delta State University of Science and Technology, Ozoro in Isoko North Local Government Area.

“I do not pride myself but it was very difficult to make such grades in higher school at that time.

“My high school result was the second-best nationally in 1976 when I finished. So, many universities admitted me through Telegram at that time, and I had to start making choices of which to accept,” the governor said.

Mr Okowa said he was less than 22 years old when he finished medical school at the University of Ibadan.

He said it was untrue that he did not have a secondary school certificate. “People try to play politics with everything,” he added.

Apart from Mr Okowa, some Nigerians have questioned the academic credentials of Bola Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress for the 2023 elections.

Governor Okowa has, meanwhile, called on the federal government to resolve the dispute with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to end the nearly five-month-old ASUU strike.

“It’s not a good thing for the children, parents and even education in general. It is unfortunate that the Federal government has not been able to attend to issues, as requested by ASUU.

“For every government, if promises are made, we must ensure that we keep to our promises and if there are things that cannot be done, you let people know,” Mr Okowa said.

The governor said all the four universities owned by the Delta government are in session because his administration “pays special attention to education”.

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