In a ruling issued on Sunday, the Court of Appeal, led by Justice Elphreda Williams-Dawodu, ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to remove the Certificate of Return issued to Plateau State Governor Caleb Mutfwang.
The court ruled that Nentawe Goshwe of the All Progressives Congress was the legitimate winner of the March 18 governorship election and ordered INEC to issue him a new Certificate of Return.
Courts have removed at least three governors whose elections were contested by competing parties, and one election has been declared inconclusive, just nine months after the elections.
The following is a list of state governors who have been fired and the reasons cited by the court:
Abba Kabir Yusuf (NNPP)
According to INEC, the NNPP received 1,019,602 votes to defeat the APC, whose candidate, Nasir Gawuna, received 890,705 votes. As a result, the NNPP candidate received 128,897 votes.
The election of Governor Yusuf was declared unlawful by the Election Petitions Tribunal, led by Justice Oluyemi Osadebay. The panel rendered this verdict by declaring Yusuf’s 165,663 votes illegal.
According to the judge, the ballot papers for the 165,663 ballots were not signed or stamped and, hence, were void.
The court ruled that Yusuf’s certificate of return should be annulled and a new one granted to Gawuna.
The Court of Appeal in Abuja also confirmed the tribunal’s ruling.
The three-member panel, led by Justice M.A. Adumeh, found that Yusuf’s name was not on the list of members of his political party.
Citing an Electoral Act provision, he argued that a party must save the names of its registered members in both hard and soft copies.
According to the judge, the panel failed to disqualify Yusuf in its ruling.
“The tribunal erred in failing to disqualify him. Failure to comply with Section 177(c) renders their election null and void. A party’s reckless nomination of a candidate is a nullity, regardless of how well he performs. Sponsorship without membership is equivalent to placing nothing on something; it will collapse. “This is a clear example of acting with brazen impunity as if the Constitution does not apply,” he stated.
On the other hand, Yusuf promised to restore his mandate at the Supreme Court.
Abdullahi Sule (APC)
The Nasarawa State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal sacked the state governor, Abdullahi Sule, in October and ordered INEC to revoke his Certificate of Return and give it to David Ombugadu of the PDP.
Ombugadu had taken Sule to court to contest INEC’s announcement of Sule as the election winner.
He told the tribunal that his actual votes were unfairly lowered while Sule of the APC’s votes were boosted to help him win, notably in the EC8Bs of Gayam and Chiroma Wards of Lafia Local Government Area.
In its decision, the tribunal, led by Justice Ezekiel Ajayi, deducted the incorrect votes added to Sule and added back the votes reduced from David Ombugadu’s overall vote total. This decision was based on the certified copies of the petitioners’ polling unit results (forms EC8A).
The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja on Wednesday, November 15, reserved judgment on the appeal.
Dauda Lawal (PDP)
INEC had declared Dauda Lawal of the PDP as the winner of the Zamfara State governorship election, defeating the incumbent governor, Bello Matawalle of the APC.
Matawalle had filed a case with the tribunal contesting the results of the governorship election on March 18, but it was dismissed due to lack of merit.
The Court of Appeal decided on Thursday, November 16, declaring the election inconclusive and ordering INEC to hold new elections in two local governments.
According to the appellate court, Matawalle, currently the Minister of State for Defense, established Lawal’s invalid election.
In a statement by his spokesperson, Sulaiman Idris, the governor said his legal team was reviewing the judgment before taking the following necessary action.
Caleb Mutfwang (PDP)
Nentawe Goshwe of the APC challenged the victory of Caleb Mutfwang at the tribunal, claiming that the governor was not validly nominated and sponsored by his party.
In a unanimous decision, a three-member panel of the tribunal headed by Justice R. Irele-Ifijeh dismissed the petition of Goshwe for lacking merit.
The three-member Court of Appeal panel, led by Justice Elfrieda Williams-Dawodu, ruled on Sunday, November 19, that the governor was not legitimately sponsored by the PDP for the election, citing Section 177 of the Constitution.
The judge pointed out that the PDP failed to adhere to a standing High Court order mandating the party to organise a legitimate party congress before endorsing candidates for the governorship and other positions.
Mutfwang, who has directed his legal team to submit an appeal to the Supreme Court, expressed hope that the mandate bestowed upon him by the state’s people would be reinstated.
