As Supreme Court fixes January 20 for ruling in appeal against Ganduje’s election
The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) Justice Tanko Muhammad, has reconstituted the seven-man panel of Justices of the Supreme Court hearing appeals that are challenging governorship election results in six states.
It would be recalled that the apex court had on Monday, abruptly suspended the hearing of all the appeals, after one of the justices on the previous panel, Justice Inyang Okoro, suddenly fell sick shortly after proceedings commenced on the appeal challenging the election of the governor of Kano State, Mr. Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State.
“Due to unforeseen circumstances, please the court will abruptly rise because one of us is seriously sick”, the CJN announced on Monday.
However, at the resumed proceeding on Tuesday, it was observed that the panel was reconstituted, as Justice Okoro was replaced by Justice Amina Augie.
Other members of the initial panel are CJN, justices Sylvester Ngwuta, Kayode Ariwola, Ekekere Ekun, Uwani Abba Ajji and Amiru Sanusi, were retained.
The panel will hear 13 appeals that arose from governorship elections held in Kano, Imo, Sokoto, Plateau, Bauchi and Benue states on March 9, 2019.
Meanwhile, the court fixed January 20 to deliver judgement on the appeal seeking to nullify Ganduje’s election.
The seven-man panel of justices reserved its verdict on the appeal marked SC/1450/2019, which the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Abba Yusuf, filed to challenge Ganduje’s re-election.
The appellant, though his lawyer, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, SAN, contended before the apex court that he scored the highest votes at the governorship contest held on March 9, 2019, and satisfied section 179 (2) (a) and (b) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended.
In the notice of appeal he filed on November 30, the PDP candidate alleged that the Kano State Returning Officer had after results of 44 local government areas were declared, cancelled results in 207 polling units in the state and declared the election as inconclusive and scheduled a re-run election for March 23, 2019.
He prayed the apex court to set-aside the concurrent judgements of both the Kano State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal and the Court of Appeal, which dismissed his petition and affirmed Ganduje of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the valid winner of the gubernatorial poll.
With Vanguard report
