The Supreme Court has upheld the election victory of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf in Kano State, reversing the earlier ruling by the Appeal Court that had nullified his victory.
The court reinstated 165,000 votes that were initially deducted by the election petition tribunal in September 2023.
The tribunal had declared these votes as “invalid,” citing the absence of stamps or signatures on the ballot papers.
Governor Yusuf, initially declared the winner by INEC with 1,019,602 votes, faced a setback when the election petition tribunal deducted 165,663 votes, leading to the nullification of his victory.
Subsequently, Nasiru Gawuna of the All Progressives Congress (APC) was affirmed as the duly elected governor by the tribunal, a decision later upheld by the Court of Appeal in November 2023.
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Challenging the rulings, Governor Yusuf took his case to the Supreme Court, seeking redress. In the legal battle, questions were raised about his qualification and NNPP membership, with Gawuna arguing that Yusuf should not have been sponsored by the party.
However, the Supreme Court clarified that the tribunal never declared Governor Yusuf unqualified to contest the election, overturning the Court of Appeal’s erroneous finding. The court emphasized that issues related to party nominations are internal matters and not subject to judicial review.