Kano, Nigeria – Hundreds of protesters took to the streets of Kano on Wednesday to express their dissatisfaction with the appeal court ruling that sacked Governor Abba Yusuf of the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP).
The protesters, who were mostly supporters of Yusuf, carried placards and banners with various slogans such as “We will not accept it”; “We will not allow it”; “Kano belongs to Abba”; “Our mandate must be restored”; “Injustice exposed in CTC”; among others.
They marched through major roads and junctions in the state capital, chanting songs and slogans in Hausa, before they were dispersed by the police.
The protest came two days after a similar demonstration was held on Monday, which was also met with resistance from the security operatives.
The appeal court had upheld the verdict of the tribunal led by Justice Oluyemi Akintan Osadebay, which sacked Yusuf on September 20, 2023, on the grounds that 165,663 votes of Yusuf were invalid because they were not signed or stamped by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The tribunal had reduced Yusuf’s votes from 1,019,602 to 853,939, while those of his rival, Nasir Ganuwa of the All Progressives Congress (APC), remained at 890,705.
Yusuf had rejected the tribunal verdict, which he described as “unfair” and “a miscarriage of justice”, and headed to the appeal court, which also ruled in favour of his opponent.
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The appeal court judgment had sparked tension in Kano as different groups fixed protests but security operatives prevented some of them from going ahead with the demonstrations to prevent break down of law and order.
The police had warned Kano residents to shun any plan for public procession or protest, especially with regards to the appeal court judgment.