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Court sacks Buhari’s ex-aide elected into House of Reps for not participating in primaries

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A Kano State Federal High Court sitting on Thursday disqualified Sulaiman Sumaila as the duly elected representative of Sumaila/Takai federal constituency of Kano at the national assembly.

Sumaila, who is a former aide to President Muhammadu Buhari, had resigned his appointment as senior special assistant to the president on national assembly (house of reps) to contest the election and he was declared winner.

Muhammed Shamsuddeen Bello, a House of Representatives candidate of the All Progressive Congress (APC) had filed a suit challenging Sumaila’s candidature.

Bello in his suit challenged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), APC and Sumaila for substituting his name with Sumaila as APC’s candidate for Takai/Sumaila federal constituency.

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He had argued that Sumaila had never contested for the position in the last APC’s primary election conducted in Kano. Rather, he said Sumaila contested for the position of Kano South senatorial district in the last primary election and lost to Senator Kabiru Ibrahim Gaya.

The presiding judge, Lewis Allagoa, on Thursday ordered INEC to withdraw the certificate of return issued to Sumaila “as he did not participate in the primary election of the party”.

Allagoa also ordered INEC to recognise Dambazau as the duly elected house of representative member representing for Sumaila/Takai federal constituency.

Muhammad Tofa, Sumaila’s lawyer, refused to comment on the matter when journalists approached him in court.

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