The Supreme Court has affirmed Abba Kabir Yusuf as the duly elected governor of Kano State under the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP). This decision overturns the judgments of both the Kano Governorship Election Petition Tribunal and the Court of Appeal, which initially declared Nasir Gawuna of the All Progressive Congress (APC) as the winner.
In the unanimous judgment delivered on Friday, January 12, Justice Inyang Okoro clarified that the lower courts erroneously deducted valid votes credited to Governor Yusuf by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The Supreme Court held that the 165,663 votes deducted based on the alleged lack of signatures, stamps, or dates on ballot papers were indeed valid. It emphasized that 146,292 of these ballots were confirmed to be signed and stamped, albeit without a date.
The court asserted that, according to section 63(1) of the Electoral Act 2022, ballot papers issued by INEC with the official mark were not entirely invalid. It further dismissed the claim that Governor Yusuf influenced the non-signing of ballot papers and criticized the lower courts for annulling his election on the grounds of his alleged non-membership in the NNPP. The Supreme Court argued that a political party’s internal matters, including candidate sponsorship, fall within its domestic affairs.
Ultimately, the court affirmed that Yusuf secured victory in the governorship election with a majority of lawful votes and was duly nominated by the NNPP.
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