By Sabiu Abdullahi
Governor Abba Yusuf of Kano state has filed an appeal at the Supreme Court challenging the decision of the Kano State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal.
The tribunal had declared Yusuf Gawuna of the All Progressives Congress (APC) winner of the March 18th, 2023 election, deducting over 165,000 votes from Yusuf’s tally due to alleged lack of proper endorsements on the ballot papers.
In a notice of appeal filed by his lawyer, Wole Olanipekun, SAN, Yusuf argues that the tribunal made a significant error in its analysis of the evidence presented by the APC.
According to the appeal, the analysis conducted by the APC’s own witness only identified 1,886 ballots without proper endorsements, a stark contrast to the 165,616 deducted by the tribunal.
The appeal argues that the tribunal erroneously deducted over 165,000 votes from Yusuf’s tally due to a misunderstanding of the evidence presented.
It claims that the analysis conducted by the APC’s witness identified only 1,886 ballots lacking proper endorsements, significantly less than the number deducted.
The appeal further clarifies that even among the ballots flagged, many had partial endorsements like signatures or stamps, not justifying their complete removal.
The appeal emphasizes that all the disputed ballots carried official markings like the INEC logo, coat of arms, and serial numbers, confirming their legitimacy.
Governor Yusuf’s legal team is confident that the Supreme Court will recognize the errors in the tribunal’s decision and restore his rightful victory.
The outcome of this appeal will have significant implications for the political landscape of Kano state and could set a precedent for future election disputes.
The Supreme Court is yet to schedule a hearing for the appeal.
Both parties will present their arguments to the justices, who will then issue a final ruling on the matter.