Supreme Court sacks all APC Candidates-elect in Zamfara State

The Supreme Court has sacked all candidates of the APC that won elections in Zamfara State, including its governor-elect, Alhaji Mukhtar Idris.

The apex court, in a unanimous judgment that was delivered by a five-man panel of Justices led by the Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Tanko Mohammed, held that the ruling party did not conduct valid primary elections to nominate candidates for any elective position in the state.

The Court upheld that the ruling of the Sokoto Division of the Court of Appeal was right that APC did not file any eligible candidate in the 2019 general election in Zamfara State.

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Reading the judgement, Justice Paul Galinje, described the votes polled by the APC candidates in the elections as wasted, adding that the party and the candidates with the second highest votes and the spread in the various elections were the valid winners.

“The appeal had no merit and it should be dismissed. It is accordingly dismissed.

“The party that has no candidate cannot be declared a winner of the election. Therefore, all votes that are credited to such party is deemed as wasted votes.

“Candidates of parties with the highest number of valid votes cast with the required spread stands elected in Zamfara”, the Supreme Court held.

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