In a significant legal development, President Bola Tinubu received a temporary reprieve as Judge Nancy Maldonado, a Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, halted the release of his university records to Atiku Abubakar, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in the February 25 presidential election.

The stay order, issued in response to Tinubu’s plea, suspended the execution of Magistrate Jeffrey Gilbert’s ruling, which had directed Chicago State University (CSU) to release Tinubu’s academic records to Atiku. This release was intended to substantiate Atiku’s allegations of perjury and forgery related to Tinubu’s CSU certificate, which he claimed disqualified Tinubu from contesting the presidential election.

Judge Gilbert had initially ordered CSU to provide these records within 48 hours, citing sufficient reasons presented by Atiku, the former vice-president of Nigeria. The court also mandated CSU administrators to validate any documents submitted under oath.

The order for the release was scheduled to take effect at 3 pm (Chicago time) on the day following the ruling but was subsequently halted by the district court.

Tinubu submitted an emergency application, requesting the District court to delay the order’s enforcement until Monday, September 25, 2023. Tinubu argued that Atiku would not suffer prejudice from this delay since he had until September 27 to submit materials supporting his appeal at the Supreme Court.

In a brief telephone conference ruling, Judge Maldonado concurred that the matter required careful consideration due to its potential severity. Consequently, she granted the application and instructed Tinubu’s legal team to submit a comprehensive brief on the matter by Monday, September 25. She noted that the court might ultimately adopt the magistrate’s recommendation and permit the discovery process to proceed or request all parties to submit fresh briefs.

Meanwhile, Atiku’s legal team pledged to respond to the brief by 11:00 p.m. on the same day.

Atiku initiated an application on August 2, seeking a mandamus order compelling CSU to disclose information about Tinubu’s record. He argued that Section 137 (1)(j) of the Nigerian Constitution, as amended in 2010, stipulates that no one can legitimately be elected president of Nigeria if they “presented a forged certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission.”

Tinubu had submitted a certificate to INEC on June 17, 2022, purportedly issued in 1979 and signed by Elnora Daniel. However, Ms. Daniel only arrived at CSU in 1998, 19 years after Tinubu’s alleged graduation. She left the school in 2008, 14 years before CSU issued another certificate in Tinubu’s name in June 2022, under subpoena from a Nigerian lawyer making inquiries about Tinubu’s education.

These discrepancies prompted Atiku’s lawsuit, seeking the release of CSU records and the deposition of top CSU officials to verify the produced records.

During a hearing on September 12, CSU’s lawyer, Michael Hayes, admitted that the school could not authenticate Tinubu’s certificate under oath. Tinubu’s legal team argued against Atiku’s application, branding it a baseless attempt to tarnish the Nigerian president’s reputation. They also contended that the Nigerian Supreme Court would not accept fresh evidence not presented during the tribunal proceeding.

In response, Atiku’s team argued that the Supreme Court could consider new facts under unique circumstances, particularly when such evidence was unavailable during the Court of Appeal proceedings, which served as the initial presidential election dispute court.

In his ruling, Judge Gilbert emphasized that U.S. courts traditionally adopt a broad and liberal perspective when granting applications under Section 1782, a statute permitting the release of documents and evidence domiciled in the U.S. for use in foreign proceedings.

In the midst of these legal proceedings, President Tinubu concluded his participation in the United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York and departed for Paris en route to Lagos. During his stay in New York, he engaged with world leaders, business leaders, and the Nigerian diaspora community.