In a landmark ruling, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois has granted the Peoples Democratic Party’s Atiku Abubakar access to President Tinubu’s academic records, ordering Chicago State University (CSU) to provide the former vice president with the requested information by Monday, October 2.
Judge Nancy Maldonado, presiding over the case, emphasized that CSU had not contested Judge Jeffery Gilbert’s decision to make the academic records public. The court determined that Atiku’s interest in obtaining this discovery outweighed any potential intrusion on President Tinubu’s personal interests in his educational history.
Tinubu’s objections to Gilbert’s suggested decision were ultimately rejected by Judge Maldonado, who fully embraced the recommendation. The court’s memorandum opinion and order stated, “Atiku’s application is, therefore, granted.”
Notably, the Supreme Court of Nigeria had previously set a deadline for the completion of this discovery, scheduled for October 5, 2023. Given this deadline and CSU’s commitment to complying with the discovery demands and providing a witness, the court established an expedited schedule for the completion of discovery.
CSU, the respondent, is now obligated to turn over all pertinent, non-privileged records by 5:00 p.m. CDT on Tuesday, October 3, 2023. It’s crucial to note that the court does not anticipate extending or altering these deadlines in light of the impending October 5 filing date mandated by the Supreme Court of Nigeria.
