Rights group raises alarm over Imo North Senatorial candidate, Ibezim Frank’s missing certificate

The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has raised the alarm over the alleged inability of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the Imo North Senatorial District, Ibezim Frank, to produce his school certificates.

The rights group in a statement by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, on Wednesday, said the situation was capable of denying the zone its representation in the senate.

He explained that the zone has had the misfortune of not being well represented because one issue or the other, which has prevented it from having a representative in the past.

Onwubiko, who challenged the APC candidate to produce his educational certificates if at all he has them, said his association was not bothered about who wins the forthcoming Imo senatorial by-election.

According to the group, it is concerned about the probity of the exercise.

“We don’t even care about whoever is the winner of the primaries of any political party. Our interest is that the person that the APC presented to the people of Imo state as the winner of that primary of their political party has not sufficiently shown the people his certificate.

“He is having a certificate issue. He has not defended the allegation that he has no proven record of any academic credential.

“We are interested because in the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, we are very proud of one of the records we achieved concerning the investigation that took place as it concerned one of the Senior Special Assistants to the President on Corruption.”

Onwubiko further stated that while the presidential aide harassed people over alleged corruption, the rights group discovered that himself did not possess any certificate that qualified him to attend a University adding that its investigation led to the eventual removal of the presidential aide.

HURIWA also condemned the alleged role of the Governor Hope Uzodinma and the Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, in allegedly producing a candidate whose credentials have not been validated.

“In the first place, there is massive evidence to show that the person who won that primary is Ifeanyi Ararume from verifiable records because they said he was among those who went to the field to participate, but the governor sat at Douglas House and conjured a report and his preferred candidate was announced as the winner of that primary.

“And there are issues that the man has not been able to explain to Nigerians.

“We will not just keep quiet and allow another question of lack of proper certificate to continue to be the dominant topic of discussion in Nigeria. By now, we should have outgrown that stage.

“We do not think that the APC should continue to have questions of producing people to stand for political offices when they are not fit and proper.”