The Supreme Court has deferred its decision on the appeal concerning the Kano State governorship election.
Following arguments presented by legal representatives in the case, the five-member panel of justices, led by Justice Inyang Okoro, chose to reserve judgment.
Governor Abba Yusuf of Kano State and the New Nigeria People Party (NNPP) jointly filed the appeal, contesting the Court of Appeal’s decision on November 17, which nullified their victory in the March 19 governorship election. The appeal also draws attention to discrepancies in the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the judgment that upheld the governor’s election and awarded him N1 million in damages.
A three-member panel of justices, headed by Justice Moore A. Adumein, had previously upheld the appeal of Nasir Yusuf Gawuna of the All Progressives Congress (APC). The panel argued that Yusuf of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) was not a registered member of the party, rendering him ineligible to contest the election.
During the recent proceedings at the Supreme Court, legal representatives engaged in debates over the court’s jurisdiction in matters related to a candidate’s political party membership. There were also discussions about whether the court could address the consequences of the Independent National Electoral Commission’s failure to sign over 160,000 ballot papers in Kano State.
