Atiku Queries Tinubu’s Ties to Zingman, Demands Clarity on CSU Claim

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to explain his relationship with Alex Zingman, a Belarusian businessman, following Tinubu’s claim that Zingman was his classmate at Chicago State University (CSU).

The claim, made during the launch of the Renewed Hope Mechanisation Programme in Abuja, has sparked renewed scrutiny of President Tinubu’s academic records and his ties to a figure mired in international controversy.

In a statement on Tuesday, the Atiku Media Office challenged the credibility of Tinubu’s assertion, noting that publicly available information shows Zingman was born in 1966, making it impossible for him to have graduated alongside Tinubu in 1979, the year the President claims he completed his studies at CSU.

“Are we now to believe that the Guinness Book of Records missed the story of a 13-year-old Belarusian prodigy graduating from an American university?” the statement read.

Who is Alex Zingman?

Alex Zingman is a Belarusian-American businessman and CEO of AFTrade DMCC, a Dubai-based company involved in the export of military and industrial equipment. He has previously been linked to arms deals and state-backed transactions in Russia, Belarus, and parts of Africa.

Zingman was detained in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2021 over suspicions of arms trading but was released without charges. Despite Tinubu’s claim, there is no public record of Zingman ever attending CSU, or any U.S. university, raising further doubts about the President’s statement.

Deeper Academic Questions

The Atiku Media Office also questioned broader inconsistencies in Tinubu’s educational background, including:

The lack of publicly verified classmates from Government College, Lagos, and CSU

A certificate dated 1970 supposedly issued by a school established in 1972


“Nigerians deserve to know why the mystery around your academic record deepens with every attempt to clarify it,” the statement said.

Call for Transparency

Emphasizing the importance of public trust, Atiku’s camp urged the President to come clean about his past.

“Your oath of office binds you not just to protect our nation but to honour its truth. The Presidency is not a sanctuary for secrets,” the statement noted.

The controversy adds to a long-running series of questions about Tinubu’s identity, academic qualifications, and associates—issues that critics say have never been fully resolved despite repeated public and legal scrutiny.

Leave a Reply