Chicago State University: Atiku’s Lawyer Seeks Court Order To Obtain Certificate Records
The United States Counsel to the Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has filed an application at the US District Court for Northern District of Illinois seeking an order to obtain from CHICAGO STATE UNIVERSITY the record of President Bola Tinubu.
The Lawyer, Angela M. Liu, filed the application in Case No. 23-cv-5099.
The application is accordance to United States Statute 28 United States Constitution 1782.
The application is titled: “DECLARATION OF ANGELA M. LIU IN SUPPORT OF THE APPLICATION PURSUANT TO 28 U.S.C. § 1782 FOR AN ORDER TO TAKE DISCOVERY FROM CHICAGO STATE UNIVERSITY.”
The Counsel informed the Court that, despite her law firm, Dechert LLP, handing a subpoena to the University in a bid to know the validity of the issuance of two diploma certificates to Tinubu with different dates, the University had failed to affirm or deny.
“I have personal knowledge of the matters set forth in her declaration, except as where specifically noted, adding that “if called upon as a witness I could and would testify competently thereto,” the Counsel told the court.
“It is a matter of public record that Applicant is a prominent businessman and politician in Nigeria. Applicant served as Vice President of Nigeria from 1999 to 2007, during the administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo. He won a contested primary to become the presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, Nigeria’s principal opposition party, during the 2019 presidential election.
“He was again the presidential candidate of Nigeria’s principal opposition party (the People’s Democratic Party, or “PDP”) in elections held in February 2023. The conduct and results of the elections-in which Bola Ahmed Tinubu (“Mr. Tinubu”) was declared the winner and Applicant was declared the runner-up-are currently the subject of legal proceedings in the Nigerian courts (the “Nigerian proceedings”), which include proceedings brought by Applicant.
“Upon information and belief, Respondent CSU is a public university established and existing under the laws of Illinois, with its principal campus and offices in Chicago. See 110 ILCS 660; see also https://www.csu.edu.
“Both before and after the election, litigants commenced proceedings in the Nigerian courts challenging various aspects of the electoral processes and, later, the election results.
“Three of these proceedings are relevant to this Application: (1) proceedings commenced in November 2022, by Mr. Mike Enahoro-Ebah against Mr. Tinubu (“Enahoro-Ebah v. Tinubu”); (2) Applicant’s lawsuit, Abubakar et al. v. INEC, et al., which was commenced in March 2023; and (3) Peter Obi and Labour Party v. INEC, Tinubu et al., in the Court of Appeal at Abuja, CA/PEPC/03/2023, which commenced in March 2023.
“Attached hereto as Exhibit A is the Complaint in Enahoro-Ebah v. Tinubu, and attached hereto as Exhibit B is the Complaint in Abubakar, et al. v. INEC et al. CSU is not a party to these proceedings.
“Attached hereto as Exhibit C is a copy of a diploma purporting to have been issued to Mr. Tinubu by CSU on June 22, 1979.
“Attached hereto as Exhibit D is a copy of a document purporting to be a September 22, 2022 letter from the Registrar of CSU to Matthew J. Kowals, Esq,” the Counsel declared in her 24-paragraph declaration in support of the Application.
