Kano Gov, Yusuf, out as Appeal Court upholds Tribunal judgment sacking him

The Abuja Division of the Appeal Court sitting in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has sacked Kano State Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf.

The panel of justices led by Justice Oluyemi Akintan Osadebay, on Friday, upheld the verdict of the State Election Petition Tribunal which sacked Yusuf on September 20.

During its hearing, the Tribunal had declared that 165,663 votes attributed to Yusuf who contested the state governorship election on the platform of the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) by the independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), were invalid on the grounds that they were not signed or stamped by the electoral body.

In the March 18 gubernatorial election, INEC had declared Yusuf winner over the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Nasir Ganuwa.

READ ALSO:Court to hear Gov Yusuf’s appeal on Kano tribunal’s verdict Monday

However, the Tribunal reduced Yusuf’s votes to 853,939 while those of Ganuwa was put at 890,705, with the lower court declaring the APC candidate the authentic winner.

Not satisfied with the verdict, Yusuf headed to the appellate court which reserved judgement for November 17.

During hearing, lead counsel for Yusuf, Wole Olanipekun (SAN), asked that the judgement of the tribunal be set aside, arguing that the ruling on ballot papers was the first time in the history that a tribunal would annul an election over non-signing of the back of ballot papers by INEC.

He noted that the tribunal erred in its judgement as the fault was that of INEC and not as a result of over voting as preseted by Ganuwa and the APC.

But counsel for the APC, Akin Olujimi (SAN), countered the argument and insisted that the non-signing of ballots amounted to electoral malpractice.

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