Taraba Commissioner in Fresh Scandal, Accused of Obtaining Fake Degree From Foreign University
- Taraba's Youth Commissioner, Joseph Joshua, has been entangled in a fresh controversy
- The top government official has been accused of obtaining a fake degree and the SSS as well as the state police command have been asked to look into the matter
- Meanwhile, the commissioner has however responded to the allegations against his position in the state
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Legit.ng journalist Esther Odili has over two years of experience covering political parties and movements
The Taraba state commissioner for youth and sports development, Joseph Joshua, has been dragged into a fresh scandal.
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The top government official, Joshua, has been accused of obtaining a fake degree from a university in the Benin Republic.
As reported by Premium Times, the allegation is contained in a petition written to the State Security Service (SSS) and copied to the state police command.
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According to the report, the petition dated 15 January, was written by a Jalingo-based lawyer, Nasiru Muhammed, on behalf of a man identified simply as Sulaiman Adamu, a social activist, and resident in Jalingo, the state capital.
“Our client informed us that Mr. Joseph Joshua who is the current Commissioner, Taraba State Ministry of Youth and Sport Development Jalingo during his screening as a Commissioner Nominee at the Taraba State House of Assembly submitted inter-alia a Degree certificate (Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Information Technology with Second Class (Upper Division) of ESGT University, Benin Republic (Cotonou, as his highest qualification obtained in 2021,” the petition stated.
The commissioner, Joshua, in response to the allegations, said:
"I have no comment. Let the security do their job."
This comes amid the undercover investigation that exposed a Benin Republic varsity.
Former minister reveals why Nigerians rush to Benin Republic
Meanwhile, the former minister of education, Prof. Tunde Adeniran, said Nigerians go to acquire fake degrees and certificates in Benin Republic and other neighbouring countries because the country values paper certificates.
Adeniran added that corruption also contributes to the rush to obtain fake degree certificates in those countries.
He stated this during an interview with The Punch on the prevalence of fake certificates from universities in the Benin Republic.
Why parents should be blamed for illegal degree-awarding universities, NUC speaks
Meanwhile, the National Universities Commission (NUC) has faulted careless parents for the rise in the number of illegal degree-awarding universities within and outside Nigeria.
The commission's acting executive secretary, Chris Maiyaki, linked the growing number of shady institutions to parents' strong desire to enrol their wards in universities.
He emphasised that illegal schools will always remain outlaws as far as Nigeria is concerned, and certifications from them would not be an admissible document in any Nigerian institution.
Benin fake certificate: I never attended any class, Journalist speaks
Legit.ng earlier reported that a reporter with the Daily Nigerian Newspaper, Umar Shehu Audu, narrated how he secured a Bachelor of Science in Mass Communication certificate from the Ecole Superieure de Gestion et de Technologies, Cotonou, Benin Republic.
Audu said he was not issued an admission letter and doesn't know where the school is located.
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Source: Legit.ng
