The Supreme Court has validated the election victory of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf in Kano State, overturning the previous decision by the Appeal Court that had nullified his win.
The court reinstated 165,000 votes in favor of the governor.
Back in September 2023, the state’s election petition tribunal deducted 165,663 votes from Yusuf’s total count, labeling them as “invalid.” This decision was based on the tribunal’s satisfaction that the affected votes lacked proper stamping or signing on the ballot papers.
Initially, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared that Yusuf secured 1,019,602 votes, defeating Nasiru Gawuna, who garnered 809,705 votes.
Following the tribunal’s nullification of Yusuf’s victory, the New Nigeria’s Peoples Party (NNPP) candidate, Gawuna of the All Progressives Congress (APC), was affirmed as the legitimate governor of the state.
This tribunal ruling was upheld by the Court of Appeal in November 2023, asserting that Yusuf was ineligible to contest the election. In response, the governor sought redress at the Supreme Court.
Gawuna, during the legal proceedings, questioned Yusuf’s NNPP membership, arguing against the party’s sponsorship of his candidacy.
The Supreme Court clarified that the tribunal never concluded that Governor Yusuf was unqualified to run for election, as wrongly interpreted by the Court of Appeal.
Furthermore, the court emphasized that the matter of nomination is exclusively within the internal domain of a political party and, therefore, not subject to judicial review.
