The Appeal Court sitting in Abuja has today fixed Friday, November 17, 2023, for delivery of judgment in the Kano State governorship election dispute between Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP, and Nasiru Gawuna of the All Progressives Congress, APC. According to the report, the Judgement would be delivered by 10:00 am West African time.
Recall that the court had on November 6, 2023, reserved judgment in the appeal by the state governor, Yusuf, who is challenging his removal by the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal to be delivered at a later date.
The Election Petition Tribunal, had on September 20, 2023 nullified Yusuf’s selection by subtracting 165, 663 of his votes as invalid after he was declared by same INEC as winner of the 2023 Kano general election.
Kicking against the ruling on ballot papers, the senior lawyer, Wole Olanipekun, SAN, said this is the first time in the history that a tribunal would annul an election over non-signing of the back of ballot papers.
The senior lawyer said the tribunal erred, arguing further that, that was the first time that a political party would file a matter without joining its candidate as a party in the petition and the candidate would declare winner of the polls.
But Akin Olujimi SAN, counsel for APC, countered him saying the Appeal Court stated emphatically that the non-signing of ballots amounted to electoral malpractice.
