Nigerian Candidate Who Claimed to Be 30 Exposed as 15-Year-Old

A Nigerian political candidate who presented himself as a 30-year-old man with dwarfism has withdrawn from the 2027 race after leaked documents reportedly showed he is actually 15.

Mahmoud Sadis Buba, from Kaduna State, had recently drawn attention as an unusual young candidate for Nigeria’s House of Representatives. He identified himself as a member of the ruling All Progressives Congress and said his childlike appearance was the result of a medical condition.

His campaign profile and striking appearance earned him the nickname “the Wonder of Zaria,” as supporters portrayed him as a fresh young voice entering national politics.

But doubts began to spread after a man claiming to be Buba’s former teacher said the candidate was not a 30-year-old adult, but a teenager.

The claims gained momentum after documents circulated online, including a birth certificate, passport, national identification details and school records. The documents reportedly indicated that Buba was born in 2010, meaning he would have been only 15 during the party screening process.

The story deepened after a relative reportedly said Buba had used the documents of an older brother to present himself as an adult.

The documents have not yet received final official confirmation, but the public pressure and consultations inside the APC were enough to push Buba out of the race. He announced that he was immediately withdrawing from the 2027 election.

The case has embarrassed Nigeria’s political system and raised questions about the APC’s candidate screening procedures. Critics are asking how a teenager could allegedly move through advanced stages of the political process without his real age being detected earlier.

The episode also turned Buba from a curiosity into a national controversy, as Nigerians debate whether the case points to a one-off deception or a broader failure in party vetting.