In a landmark judgment, the Court of Appeal in Abuja has ruled in favour of Bako Kasim of the All Progressives Congress (APC), overturning the victory of Suleiman Wanchiko of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Bida I (North) State Constituency election in Niger State.
Justice Bature Isa-Gafai, leading a three-member panel, delivered the judgment, deeming Wanchiko’s appeal unmeritorious and upholding the argument presented by Kasim’s counsel, Johnson Usman, SAN. The court found that Wanchiko’s presentation of a forged testimonial to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) rendered him unqualified to contest the election, thus warranting his disqualification.
Following the election conducted on March 18, INEC initially declared Wanchiko as the winner with 12,062 votes, surpassing Kasim’s 11,820 votes. However, dissatisfied with this outcome, Kasim and the APC, represented by Mr. Usman, lodged a petition with the state’s election petition tribunal, highlighting Wanchiko’s alleged qualification irregularities and non-compliance with the Electoral Act 2022.
The tribunal, after due consideration, found merit in the petitioners’ case, consequently disqualifying Wanchiko and ordering a re-run without his participation. Subsequently, Wanchiko, through his counsel Aliyu Lemu, SAN, appealed the tribunal’s decision at the Court of Appeal, seeking to overturn the ruling. Meanwhile, Kasim’s legal team urged the court to dismiss the appeal and reinstate their client as the rightful winner.
Ultimately, the appellate court upheld Usman’s argument, ruling that Wanchiko’s disqualification warranted Kasim’s declaration as the rightful winner of the election. Furthermore, the court directed INEC to issue Kasim a Certificate of Return in light of the new development.
This judgment signifies a significant turn of events in the Bida I (North) State Constituency election and paves the way for Kasim to assume the mandate given by the electorate.
