Jubilation as Court upholds Tambuwal’s election as Sokoto Governor

An Abuja division of the Federal High Court has, Friday, upheld the election of the Sokoto state Governor, Aminu Tambuwal while dismissing a suit seeking his removal from office.

In his ruling, Justice Gabriel Kolawole held that the application challenging Governor Tambuwal’s emergence as the Governorship candidate in the December 4, 2014 primary election of the All Progressives Congress in Sokoto State lacked in merit. He therefore dismissed the suit.

Recall that another member of the party, Sen. Umaru Dahiru had filed an application seeking to remove Tambuwal from office on accounts that the primary election of the All Progressives Congress (APC) that produced Tambuwal for the 2015 governorship election was not validly conducted.

Counsel to Dahiru, Mr Ikoro I. Ikoro, had argued and sought to amend an originating summon filed against the APC, Tambuwal and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) before the April 11, 2015 governorship election.

Dahiru had, In that amendment, prayed the court to remove Tambuwal from office and declare him as the winner of the December 2014 APC Primary Election.

He had also asked the court for an order compelling INEC to withdraw the certificate of return issued to the governor and present it to him on the grounds that he was the lawfully elected candidate of the APC at the primary election.

The senator had equally sought an order nullifying the nomination of Tambuwal by APC for the 2015 governorship election and asked that Tambuwal be replaced by him as the properly nominated APC candidate to INEC for the 2015 governorship election.

However, Justice Kolawole ruled that Senator Dahiru was unable to substantiate his claims of irregularities in the primaries. He also noted that it was not in the jurisdiction of the court to nullify the outcome of the primaries or order a fresh one since such powers were vested in the hands of the election petition tribunal.

Justice Kolawale also said that if a fresh primaries were to be conducted, it would involve not just APC alone but all the parties that had their primaries then. He said Senator Dahiru’s prayers would have fallen under the jurisdiction of the court if the senator’s suit had been on who won the primaries and not about irregularities in its conduction.

He also noted that had Dahiru proven that he won the primaries, then Governor Tambuwal would have been sacked while he would have been affirmed as the governor. Vanguard