The controversy surrounding the academic credentials of Uche Nnaji, Nigeria’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, escalated sharply on Monday after his media aide, Robert Ngwu, accused Enugu State Governor Peter Mbah of orchestrating a smear campaign against the minister.
At a press briefing in Abuja, Ngwu vehemently denied claims that Nnaji forged his university degree and National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificates. He argued these allegations were politically motivated and claimed the smear was engineered by Governor Mbah to undermine the minister’s reputation.
“All these sponsored events are being coordinated by Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State,” Ngwu alleged, adding that the governor sought to make Nnaji “a scapegoat” for his own political challenges.
Ngwu further disclosed that Nnaji had formally requested his academic transcript from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), in order to clear the air — but alleged the university had failed to release it despite a court order. He also claimed that the minister’s file had been “kept under lock and key” in the office of UNN’s Vice-Chancellor.
When asked about the discrepancy between names on different documents (e.g. “Nnaji Uchenna” vs. “Uche Geoffrey Nnaji”), Ngwu said the variation was culturally explainable, contending that “Uchenna” and “Uchechukwu” are interchangeable in Igbo usage.
Ngwu maintained that Nnaji graduated from UNN in 1985 — a fact he claimed the university confirmed in a December 2023 letter. But that assertion conflicts with a Premium Times investigation, which revealed that UNN’s Vice-Chancellor, Simon Ortuanya, stated in a Freedom of Information response that Nnaji was not a graduate of the institution — that although he was admitted in 1981, he did not complete his studies. The VC confirmed that he found no record of Nnaji in the graduation
register.In contrast, a December 2023 statement from UNN’s Registrar, Celine Nnebedum, initially confirmed Nnaji’s graduation but later retracted that claim. She told the Public Complaints Commission in May 2025 that a search of the 1985 graduation list yielded no trace of his name.
The investigation also uncovered that Nnaji, in a court affidavit, admitted he had never collected a degree certificate from UNN. He has since filed a lawsuit at the Federal High Court against the Minister of Education, the National Universities Commission (NUC), UNN, and others, seeking to restrain interference with his academic records.
At Monday’s court hearing, Sebastian Hon (SAN) represented Nnaji, while E.M. Asogwa appeared for the university. Neither the Minister of Education nor NUC filed appearances.
Responding to Ngwu’s allegation of Mbah’s involvement, Chukwuemeka Nebo, Director of Information at the Enugu State Ministry of Information, distanced the state government from the controversy. He challenged Nnaji to “carry your cross and clear your name,” accusing the minister of delegating his defence to proxies instead of speaking directly. Nebo raised a litany of pointed questions about Nnaji’s academic and NYSC records:
Did Nnaji present a purported degree certificate to the Senate for his screening, despite deposing in court that UNN never issued one?
Did he fail a Virology course (MCB 431) in supplementary examinations in 1985 and 1986 as documented in UNN letters?
How did he submit a NYSC discharge certificate signed by a Corps head who held office after his service purportedly ended?
Why include an alphabetic character in a certificate number when NYSC documents at the time used only digits?
Nebo demanded that Nnaji respond — directly — and furnish Nigerians with clarity rather than casting blame.
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