ON SATURDAY, October 23, 2020, when Baze University, Abuja, had her combined 7th and 8th convocation ceremony, a viral post circulated online that a former Nigerian Senator, Dino Melaye, had graduated from the institution with a first-class honours.
The claim which was shared on Twitter and Facebook by different users also asserted that the former senator emerged as the best graduating law student of the institution.
Similarly, the news of Melaye emerging as the best law student at Baze University was published on Peoples Gazette.
“Mr Melaye’s aide, Bode Gbadebo, posted a picture of him on Facebook, alongside other individuals adorned in an academic dress, with the caption “Senator Dino Melaye graduates from Baze University, emerges best graduating law student,” the news read in part.
THE CLAIM
Dino Melaye made first-class honours, emerged best graduating law student at Baze University.
THE FINDINGS
Findings by The FactCheckHub show that the claim is false.
The Fact-CheckHub during a fact-finding mission to Baze University found out that the former lawmaker did not graduate with a first-class honours degree and was not the best graduating law student of the institution.
The school’s registrar Mani Ibrahim Ahmad, who spoke with The FactCheckHub stated that those that graduated with first-class honours had ‘First-Class’ boldly written in front of their names in the school convocation ceremony programme booklet.
Ahmad added that, same goes for those that graduated as best graduating student in each department.
“The convocation programme booklet already clarified those that graduated with first class, as well as those that graduated as best graduating student in each department,” Ahmad noted.
The FactCheckHub also checked the convocation programme booklet for verification. From the booklet, it was observed that Melaye was among the 91 law students that made the university’s 8th convocation list.
Ten of the 91 students graduated with first-class honours, the senator was not part of them.
Furthermore, the lawmaker did not graduate as the best law student either as that was Rosemary Keccy Busari who graduated as best in the department and and in the faculty.
THE VERDICT
The claim that Dino Melaye made first-class honours and emerged best graduating law student at Baze University is FALSE.
