A Federal High Court in Abuja has rejected an application filed by the Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Uche Nnaji, seeking to prevent the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) from releasing his academic records.
In a ruling delivered on September 22, Justice Hauwa Yilwa dismissed Nnaji’s request for an injunction that would have stopped the university from disclosing or altering his academic records.
The judgment, obtained via a Certified True Copy, was made available to journalists on Sunday.
The minister had filed an ex parte motion (FHC/ABJ/CS/1909/2025) asking the court to:
- Restrain UNN and its officials from tampering with his academic records.
- Compel the university to release his academic transcript.
- Prevent any third-party access to his student file.
- Issue an injunction blocking the university from making any information public.
After reviewing arguments from Nnaji’s legal team, Justice Yilwa ruled that while the minister had legitimate interest in the case, the request for an injunction lacked merit.
“I find that the applicant has sufficient interest in the matter, and the application is partly meritorious. Accordingly, prayers 1, 2, and 3 are granted, while prayer 4, which sought an injunction, is declined,” the judge ruled.
Justice Yilwa emphasized that the reliefs granted should not be construed as preventing any party from carrying out their lawful duties.
Meanwhile, the Vice-Chancellor of UNN, Prof. Simon Ortuanya, in a letter dated October 2, 2025, confirmed that the institution had no record of Mr. Nnaji graduating.
“From our records, we cannot confirm that Mr. Geoffrey Uchechukwu Nnaji, the current Minister of Science and Technology, graduated from the University of Nigeria in July 1985. There are no records showing that he completed his studies,” the VC stated.
The university’s position aligns with an earlier letter sent to the Public Complaints Commission in May 2025, which also stated that Mr. Nnaji did not complete his academic programme and therefore could not have been issued a degree certificate.
However, in his court filings, the minister claimed that UNN had confirmed his graduation in a letter dated December 21, 2023, which was sent to an online news outlet.
He blamed his inability to obtain a certificate on the “non-cooperative attitude” of certain university officials.
“Even though I am yet to collect my certificate from UNN, the institution issued a letter confirming that I graduated in July 1985 with a Second Class (Lower Division) in Microbiology/Biochemistry,” Nnaji stated in his affidavit.
Nnaji’s suit listed the Minister of Education, National Universities Commission (NUC), University of Nigeria, its Vice-Chancellor, Registrar, former Acting VC Prof. Oguejiofor Ujam, and the Senate of UNN as the first to seventh respondents.
