The Supreme Court on Friday overturned the verdict of the Court of Appeal and reinstated Abba Kabir Yusuf of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) as the duly elected governor of Kano State.
The decision, delivered by Justice John Inyang Okoro, affirmed the election of Abba Yusuf, who defeated Alh. Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the March 2023 election.
Gawuna, however, challenged the outcome, alleging widespread irregularities. The Election Tribunal and later the Court of Appeal upheld his petition, setting aside Yusuf’s victory and ordering a fresh poll.
However, in a dramatic turn of events, the Supreme Court today deemed the lower courts’ rulings flawed. Justice Okoro, in his judgement, dismissed the claims of invalid ballots, stating that “there is no proof that the said ballot papers were not the ones used at the election.” He further criticised the Court of Appeal’s interpretation of the Electoral Act, adding that a ballot paper’s validity is not solely dependent on the presence of an INEC mark.
“Finally, the lower court wrongly misconstrued its evaluation of the ballot papers. This amounts to perversion. Accordingly, all the ballot papers are restored to Governor Yusuf,” she said.
“adding that a ballot paper’s validity is not solely dependent on the presence of an INEC mark.”
If quoted correctly, I fear that this might lead to electoral malpractice that would be difficult to prove. Wicked and corrupt politicians would take advantage of it.