Sokoto Court of Appeal upholds election of Senator Gobir
By Bahir Rabe Mani
The Court of Appeal, Sokoto Division, on Tuesday upheld the election of Senator Ibrahim Abdullahi Gobir, representing Sokoto East Senatorial District ,on the platform of the All Progressive Congress (APC)
In a unanimous Judgment concurred by all the three Justices , the Court dismissed the petition filed by Hon. Salihu Maidaji of the Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP), where he challenged the Judgment of the National and States Houses of Assemblies Elections Petitions Tribunal, which sat in Sokoto.
The Independent National Electoral Commission ( INEC), had on 25th February,2019, declared Sen. Gobir as the winner of the February 23, 2019, Senatorial elections .
Dissatisfied wirh the decision, Maidaji filed a petition before the lower Court on 25th March , 2019.
The Tribunal in it’s Judgment held that, the petition was filed out of time , hence , Statute barred and subsequently dismissed same.
Maidaji filed the Appeal at the Court of Appeal on the 18th of March ,2019.
In the Judgment, Justice Hamma Akawu Barka said that, the Court has agreed with the decision of the lower Court that, the petition was statute barred and it lacks the jurisdiction to entertain it.
Justice Barka said that, the Court has affirmed the decision of the lower Court and thereby dimissed the Appeal.
In another judgment read by Justice Fatima Akinbanmi, the Court upheld the election of Dr Abdullahi Balarabe Salame, APC, representing Gwadabawa and Illela Federal Constituency and dismissed the appeal filed by Hon. Halliru Garba Gidan Hamma of the PDP.
Jusitce Akinbanmi said that, the Court has affirmed the judgment of the lower Court and that, the appeal lacked merit .
The court awarded N 50,000 costs in favour of each of the three Respondents.
In another unanimous Judgement delivered by the Presiding Justice , Justice Ibrahim Musa Saulawa, the Court affirmed the decision of the lower Court that declared the election in the Sokoto North 2 Constituency as inconclusive .
The lower Court had also ordered INEC to conduct fresh polls in six polling units of the constituency .
Justice Saulawa averred that, the appeal lacked merit and therefore dismissed , with N 50,000 costs in favour of each of the three Respondents.