The National Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal in Yola, Adamawa State, has thrown out petitions filed against two members of the House of Representatives.
On Monday, the tribunal dismissed the petitions brought against Mohammed Salihu, who represents Girei/Yola South/Yola North federal constituency, and Jingi Rufai, a member representing Maiha/Mubi North/Mubi South federal constituency.
The petitions were filed by candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abubakar Magaji Jaafar, and Abubakar Baba Zango, respectively.
In the petition against Salihu, Zango alleged that he presented a forged primary school certificate and birth certificate. Zango requested the tribunal to order the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to issue him a certificate of return as he secured the second position in the election.
Jaafar, on the other hand, claimed that Rufai, who was declared the winner of the election held on February 25, 2023, was not duly elected due to overvoting. He urged the tribunal to nullify INEC’s announcement of Rufai as the winner and compel the electoral body to withdraw the certificate of return given to the PDP candidate. Jaafar also sought the tribunal’s order to reinstate him as the elected candidate.
Chairman of the tribunal, Justice Aloysius Okuma, delivered the judgement in Jaafar’s petition, declaring that the petitioner failed to provide credible evidence to support his case. The petition was dismissed in its entirety, and a sum of N600,000 was awarded against the petitioner in favor of Jingi Rufai.
Meanwhile, Justice Nkereuuwem Obot, in his decision on Zango’s petition against Mohammed Salihu, dismissed the petition for lacking merit. Zango was also ordered to pay a sum of N600,000.
