The Supreme Court has ruled against the appeal brought forth by Jibrin Barde, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in Gombe State, dismissing his appeal challenging Governor Inuwa Yahaya’s election.
In a unanimous judgment on Friday, the panel of justices held that the appeal lacks merit and is unnecessary.
This follows the dismissal on Thursday of an appeal by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate, Nafiu Bala, against Yahaya’s election.
The Court of Appeal in Abuja had previously upheld Governor Inuwa Yahaya’s election in November 2023. Mr. Yahaya was elected for a second and final term in March 2023 after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared him the winner with 342,821 votes. His closest opponent, Jibrin Barde, secured 233,131 votes.
Dissatisfied with the election outcome, Barde and the PDP jointly filed a petition at the Gombe State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, alleging that Mr. Yahaya was not re-elected by the majority of valid votes.
However, the tribunal ruled that Barde failed to substantiate the allegations of electoral fraud against Mr. Yahaya and the All Progressives Congress (APC).
