ENUGU, Nigeria — Former Minister of Innovation, Science, and Technology, Chief Uche Nnaji, has won the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship primary election in Enugu State, capturing the party’s ticket for the 2027 gubernatorial election despite ongoing controversies surrounding his academic credentials.
Nnaji, who defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the PDP earlier this month, secured a landslide victory by polling 7,424 votes to defeat his rival, Samson Nnamani, who trailed far behind with 600 votes. The primary election was conducted in Enugu on Monday by the Chairman of the State Gubernatorial Committee, Austin Nwachukwu.
The Certificate Forgery Scandal and Resignation
Nnaji’s victory comes just months after he resigned from President Bola Tinubu’s cabinet in October 2025. His resignation followed a high-profile investigative report alleging that he presented forged university degree and National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificates during his 2023 ministerial screening.
A federal investigative panel subsequently confirmed that Nnaji did not graduate from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), noting that he had failed a key course and was excluded from the institution’s official 1985 graduation list. While Nnaji dismissed the forgery allegations as a politically motivated smear campaign orchestrated by his rivals, the scandal forced his exit from the federal executive council.
Factional Politics and Post-Election Promises
Political analysts note that Nnaji’s emergence as the PDP flagbearer represents a significant victory for the party faction loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike. Nnaji previously ran an unsuccessful campaign for the Enugu governorship seat under the APC banner in 2023 before his brief ministerial appointment.
In his acceptance speech following Monday’s primary, Nnaji thanked party delegates for entrusting him with the mandate. He pledged that his future administration would focus on economic relief, vowing to lessen the financial burdens on Enugu residents by eliminating what he described as excessive and obnoxious taxes imposed over the last three years.
