The election tribunal in Nigeria has revoked the win of Kano State Governor Yusuf Abba in the March 18, 2023 polls.
The three-member tribunal has, instead, declared the first runner-up, Nasir Gawuna, as the rightful winner.
The authorities have imposed a 24-hour curfew to forestall any possible breakdown of law and order as tension mounted as the judgment was delivered.
Announcing the court decision on Wednesday, Judge Oluyemi Akintan-Osadebay said thousands of invalid votes were added to Abba’s tally, which eventually led to his victory.
Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission had declared Abba of the New Nigeria People’s Party as the winner with 1,019,602 votes.
Gawuna of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) party came second with 890,705 votes, some 128,897 votes behind Abba’s tally.
Irregularities
The tribunal said it had established that 165,663 votes in Abba’s tally had not been stamped or signed by relevant electoral officers and agents.
The tribunal, therefore, deducted 165,663 votes from Abba’s original count of 1,019,602, leaving him with 853,939 votes. This tally falls behind that of Gawuna, who had just over 890,700 votes.
The tribunal, therefore, declared Gawuna the winner and instructed the Independent National Electoral Commission to award him the winner’s certificate.
After the election results were announced in March, Gawuna conceded defeat, and even congratulated Abba.
Gawuna, however, rescinded the concession and filed a petition in court, seeking a review of the electoral outcome, citing irregularities.
