The Supreme Court, on Monday, affirmed the re-election of Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje and his Sokoto state counterpart, Aminu Tambuwal.
The two governors’ victory at the apex Court comes after days of marathon prayer sessions and vigils held amidst boiling tensions by their supporters in the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) respectively in the two Northwest states.
The duo are currently serving their second term in office following their triumph at the 2019 gubernatorial polls.
While delivering judgement on the Kano State governorship election appeal, the Supreme Court in a unanimous judgement by a seven-man panel of Justices led by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) Justice Tanko Muhammad, dismissed an appeal the candidate of the PDP, Abba Yusuf, filed to challenge the outcome of the last governorship election in the state.
Yusuf had in his appeal marked SC/1450/2019, prayed the Supreme Court to set aside the concurrent decision of both the Kano Governorship Election Petition Tribunal and the Court of Appeal, which affirmed Ganduje’s re-election.
The appellant contended that he scored the highest votes at the governorship contest that held on March 9, 2019, and satisfying section 179 (2) (a) and (b) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
In the notice of appeal he filed on November 30, he alleged that the Kano State Returning Officer had after results of 44 Local Government Areas were declared, cancelled results in 207 polling units in the state and declared the election as inconclusive and scheduled a re-run election for March 23, 2019.
However, in its lead judgement that was delivered by Justice Sylvester Ngwuta on Monday, the Supreme Court, said it saw no reason to dislodge the judgements of the two lower courts.
It held that facts the PDP candidate adduced before it was inconsistent with the sole ground of his appeal, adding that he failed to demonstrate that judgements of the two lower courts were perverse.
Similarly, the Supreme Court has affirmed Aminu Tambuwal of the PDP as the valid winner of the last governorship election in Sokoto State.
The seven-man panel deciding the case dismissed an appeal by the candidate of the APC, in the state, Ahmed Sokoto, filed to challenge Tambuwal’s re-election.
The apex Court held that the appellant failed to adduce any credible evidence to prove his petition against the outcome of the governorship election.
Justice Musa Abba-Ajji who delivered the lead judgement noted that whereas the appellant produced 12 witnesses before the tribunal, 11 of made their statements in the 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 election was invalid by virtue of non-compliance with the Electoral Act.
It held that he failed to discharge the onus placed on him by the law, and accordingly dismissed the appeal marked SC/1466/19.
