Abuja — All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) governorship candidate for Niger State in the last polls, David Umaru, has lost an interlocutory application he brought to strengthen his appeal against the declaration of Muazu Babangida Aliyu as winner of the governorship election in the state.

The court presided over by Justice Rabiu Danlami Mohammed rejected the interlocutory appeal on the grounds that it was an abuse of court process and then adjourned further hearing on the matter to December 17.

Umaru had filed the appeal before the court challenging the judgment of the Election Petitions Tribunal in Minna which affirmed the election of Aliyu as governor.

The tribunal, headed by Justice Suleiman Kawu, had on June 9, 2007 ruled that Umaru (the petitioner) shot himself on the foot by refusing to join the presiding officers of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as interested parties in his petition.

The tribunal noted that as a result, it was not possible for the petitioner to provide both oral and written evidence to substantiate his claim that the election was marred by irregularities.

Umaru, through his lead counsel, Mike Ahamba (SAN), had moved a motion seeking to resurrect an application against the ruling of the lower tribunal on October 23, 2007 which struck out some paragraphs in his petition on the ground that the INEC presiding officers whom allegations were made against were not joined as interested parties.