On Saturday, the tribunal in Kaduna State upheld the election of People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate Lawal Adamu-Usman as the senator for Kaduna Central.
The All Progressives Congress’s Abdullahi Muhammad-Sani had filed a petition challenging the PDP senator’s election on four grounds: forged school certificates, overvoting, noncompliance, and improper nomination and sponsorship.
The three-person panel led by Justice H.H. Kereng rejected all the petitioners’ arguments and ruled, “The elections and return of the first respondent are hereby affirmed.” The present petition is denied.
The judge had previously stated that the petitioner did not provide sufficient evidence to establish that the respondent’s NECO results and other academic credentials were fraudulent.
He continued by saying the petitioner had not shown that the respondent had not been elected with a majority of the vote on February 25.
The difference between the APC and the PDP was 43,031, with the APC receiving 182,035 votes to the PDP’s 225,066. The petitioner has not presented conclusive evidence that the respondent did not receive a majority of the vote. His ruling sided with the first respondent and against the petitioner.
The judge stated that the petitioner failed to provide sufficient evidence to establish that election results were tainted by non-compliance.
He continued by saying the court shouldn’t be responsible for the sponsorship and nomination of candidates, thus he ruled in favor of the respondent.
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