On June 3, 1999, Salisu Buhari, a 29-year-old Nigerian businessman who had made his fortune in the IT industry, was elected Speaker of the Nigerian House of Representatives, giving him Nigeria’s fourth-highest office under the constitution.
His colleagues, the government and Nigeria as a whole did not know that Salisu Buhari was unfit for the position held.
A few weeks after his election, results showed that Salisu Buhari, the sixth Speaker of the House of Representatives, had succeeded in coming to power.
News Magazine published an article on July 19, 1999, stating that Salisu Buhari was seven years younger than his stated age of 36 and had not attended, let alone graduated from, the University of Toronto in Canada.The News Magazine had sufficient evidence to support its claims, thus refuting any threat by Salisu Buhari and his lawyers to sue them for defamation.
The world has learned that Salisu Buhari, a self-proclaimed graduate of the University of Toronto, was actually born in 1970 and not 1963 as he claimed. This meant that he no longer met the requirements for the office of rapporteur, because Art. 65 Chapter Section 1 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria prohibits persons under 30 years of age from running for the House of Representatives.
It was also reported that Salisu Buhari did not attend the University of Toronto in Canada, let alone obtain a degree in business administration in 1990. When asked, the University of Toronto denied knowing Salisu Buhari.Management said they found no trace of his name. Carlo Villanueva, an official of the institution, explained:
“In relation to your application for confirmation of the academic qualifications of Mr. Ibrahim Salisu Buhari. We have searched our archives and have not found anyone with the name you requested.”
Salisu also claimed to have served as Youth Minister at Standard Construction in Kano. This proved to be false as the records of the New York Secretariat in Abuja did not record his name among the 1991 corps members who participated in the program.
He was stuck in every way and had no escape. After several open denials of the allegations and threats to sue the News magazine, Salisu Buhari finally appeared before Nigerians on Thursday, July 23, 1999 and pleaded guilty to misrepresentation of age and forgery of certificates.With tears in his eyes he said:
”I’m sorry. Sorry, nation.I apologize to my family and friends for all the pain I have caused them. My zeal to serve the nation has led me astray. I hope the nation forgives me and gives me the opportunity to serve again.”
Then he stepped back and disappeared into the shadows. In 2013, he returned to the news and public sphere when he was appointed to the Board of Trustees of the University of Nigeria by the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan.
In general, this decision has met with strong criticism. In a feeble attempt to justify the appointment, the Nigerian government said Buhari’s apology earned him a presidential pardon from President Olusegun Obasanjo.
