Headlines
Supreme Court upholds Tambuwal, Ganduje’s elections
Also Bala Mohammed, Simon Lalong
BY OUR EDITOR
The Supreme Court, on Monday, affirmed the election of Aminu Tambuwal of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), as the duly elected governor of Sokoto State in the March 2019 governorship election.
The apex court dismissed an appeal of the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, Ahmed Sokoto, filed to challenge Tambuwal’s re-election.
A seven-man panel of justices of the court headed by Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Tanko Muhammad, held that the appellant failed to adduce any credible evidence to prove his petition against the outcome of the governorship election.
Also, the Supreme Court Monday upheld the election of Abdullahi Ganduje as duly elected Governor of Kano State.
Equally validated were the elections of governors Bala Muhammed and Simon Lalong of Bauchi and Plateau states, respectively.
A seven-man panel of the apex court led by Justice Sylvester Ngwuta unanimously dismissed the appeal filed by the All Progressives Congress and its governorship candidate, Muhammed Abubakar against Bala Mohammed of PDP
Justice Dattijo Muhammad, who read the lead judgment, held that the evidence of the appellants’ witnesses at the election tribunal was inadmissible.
Justice Sylvester Ngwuta, who headed the seven-man panel of the apex court, dismissed the appeal filed by Jeremiah Useni of PDP against Simon Lalong of APC.
Justice Paul Galinje, who delivered the lead judgment, held that the appeal lacked merit.
A seven-man panel of the court, was unanimous in dismissing the appeal filed by the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Abba Kabir Yusuf against the concurrent judgments of the two lower courts (election tribunal and Court of Appeal) saying it was without merit.
Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State
READ: Supreme Court sacks Imo Governor, Emeka Ihedioha
Justice Sylvester Ngwuta, in the lead judgment, held that the appellant failed to provide any cogent reason to warrant the setting aside of the earlier decisions of the lower courts, which upheld Ganduje’s election.
Justice Musa Abba-Ajji who delivered the lead judgment in the Sokoto case, noted that whereas the appellant produced 12 witnesses before the tribunal, 11 of them made their statements in Hausa language while the English version was tendered in evidence.
It held that the appellant failed to tender the original version of the statements he tendered in evidence and also failed to produce the translator to confirm the authenticity or otherwise of the 11 statements.
Besides, the apex court held that the appellant was unable to prove that the Sokoto governorship election was invalid by virtue of non-compliance with the Electoral Act.