The National Assembly Election Petition Tribunal in Katsina on Sunday invalidated two House of Representatives elections won by Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidates due to the falsification of primary school transcripts.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was directed by the Tribunal to conduct a supplementary election in some polling units where polls were not held during the election on February 25 to decide the winner. The Tribunal also declared two elections inconclusive.
In its decision on the petition brought by Sani Danlami Aliyu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) challenging Aminu Ahmadu Chindo of the PDP’s declaration and return, a three-member tribunal panel presided over by Justice O. Ogunfowora found that the Respondent had failed to establish his attendance at the former Kofar Soro Primary School.
The petitioner claimed that the first respondent (Chindo) had submitted a false elementary school recommendation. He stated that the Kofar Soro Primary School testimony that the Respondent, the Third Respondent, provided to INEC was fabricated, according to Daily Trust.
Given that the first respondent lacked the necessary qualifications to run for office, he requested that the Tribunal declare him the election’s victor.
The Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) Aminu Ahmadu Chindo was returned to the House of Representatives to represent the Katsina Central Federal Constituency, according to the Tribunal’s judgement. This return is now void and has been set aside.
Sani Aliyu, the first petitioner and member of the House of Representatives for the Katsina Central Federal Constituency, was also found to have been re-elected by the Tribunal, which also directed INEC to provide him with a certificate of return.
As a result, the judges fined the first and second Respondents (PDP and Chindo) N200,000.00 in costs.
The petition was based on section 66(1)(i) of the 1999 constitution (as amended), which states that presenting a false certificate to INEC disqualifies a candidate for either the position of Reps member or senator. Earnest Obunadike, the lead attorney for Hon. Sani Danlami, provided an explanation of the decision.
Ismail Dalha, a PDP representative for the federal seat of Kankia/Kusada/Ingawa, had his return revoked by the court for falsifying his primary school diploma.
The tribunal instructed INEC to provide a certificate of return to Hon. Abubakar Yahya of the APC, who finished second in the poll with 31,017 votes.
The Kankara/Faskari/Sabuwa federal constituency election result was ruled by the tribunal to be inconclusive after the APC candidate, Hon. Dalhatu Shehu Tafoki, disputed the victory of Hon. Mohammed Jamilu of the PDP, who was returned by INEC.
In addition to additional polls in some of the constituency’s polling places, the court ordered new elections in other places.
Sagir Tahir, a lawyer for the petitioners, noted that while there were overvotes in some polling places, there were other places where voting did not take place.
In order to ensure that no qualified voter was denied the right to vote, the court used the margin of lead concept and ordered additional elections.
Similar to Katsina, where the APC candidate, Ahmed Zakka Abdulkadir, disputed the victory of Hon. Iliyasu Abubakar of the PDP, who was returned by INEC, the Katsina tribunal had ruled the Batsari/Safana/Danmusa federal constituency election result as inconclusive.
In addition, the court mandated that some polling places and the constituency’s other polling places have new elections.
