The Court of Appeal in Abuja has nullified the election of Senator Ishaku Abbo, who represents Adamawa North Senatorial District in the National Assembly. The ruling was made in favor of the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Amos Yohanna.
Confirming the news, Senator Abbo, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), disclosed that a three-member panel led by Justice C.E. Nwosu-Iheme delivered the judgment.
This development comes after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Senator Abbo as the winner of the senatorial poll on February 25.
Displeased with the outcome, Yohanna and the PDP filed a petition challenging the declaration before the National and State Houses of Assembly Election Tribunal in Yola, Adamawa State. However, the tribunal dismissed the petition, deeming it lacking in merit.
In response to the tribunal’s decision, Yohanna’s counsel, Johnson Usman, SAN, lodged an appeal (CA/YL/EP/AD/SEN/06/2023) with the Court of Appeal.
The Court of Appeal carefully considered the arguments put forth by both parties and concurred with Mr. Usman’s assertion that there was a violation of Section 137 of the Electoral Act, 2022. The court also noted that the submitted results did not comply with the Electoral Act.
Consequently, the court deducted the invalid votes and declared Yohanna and the PDP as the winners of the election, based on the majority of lawful votes. As a result, the court nullified the Certificate of Return previously given to Senator Abbo and directed INEC to issue it to Yohanna as the duly elected representative for Adamawa North Senatorial District.
Responding to the judgment, Sam Ologunorisa, SAN, the lawyer representing Yohanna, stated that he had no further comments as the Court of Appeal has the final say in the matter.
When contacted for a reaction, Michael Numa, SAN, the lawyer representing the APC, expressed his need to review the judgment before making any statements. “I was not present in court during the delivery of the judgment, so I will need to study it first,” he said.
The panel that presided over this case consisted of Justice M.I. Sirajo and Justice O.A. Adegbhinde.
NAN
