An uneasy calm settled over the commercial city of Kano, yesterday, after the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal nullified the election of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf of New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) and pronounced Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna of All Progressives Congress (APC) as rightful winner of the March 18 governorship election in the state.
Business activities were brought to a halt in the metropolis, as offices and businesses closed and many people headed home, afraid that there might be violent reactions to the tribunal judgement.
The governing party in the state, NNPP, expressed its resolve to appeal the tribunal ruling.
But an excited National Chairman of APC and former governor of the state, Abdullahi Ganduje, urged supporters of the party to remain peaceful.
The Kano State Police command imposed a 24-hour curfew as part of measures to forestall a breakdown of law and order across the state.
Some residents and business owners, especially at the Sabon Gari market, ran helter-skelter, and closed their business premises as news of the tribunal ruling broke.
But a combined team of security agencies was deployed in different parts of the state capital to try to allay fears.
Yusuf had been declared winner of the governorship election and returned as governor by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
But head of the election tribunal, Justice Oluyemi Akintan-Osadebey, during a ruling delivered via zoom, said the NNPP candidate did not win the governorship poll.
The tribunal deducted 165,663 votes from Yusuf's votes as invalid, and held that the ballot papers (165,663) were not stamped or signed.
Akintan-Osadebey, who led the three-man panel of the tribunal, gave the final judgment after cancelling some votes recorded by NNPP.
Among the reasons given by the tribunal for sacking Yusuf were that his name was not in the NNPP register submitted to INEC and over-voting.
The panel ordered the withdrawal of the certificate of return, which INEC had presented to Yusuf, and directed that the certificate of return should be issued to Gawuna.
A member of the defence team, Bashir Muhammad Tudun Wada, said the tribunal had delivered its judgement but his client would appeal it.
Wada said, "It is a judgement, which we felt does not manifest the justice of the matter, and I can assure you this decision will be set aside on appeal.
"It is not a new thing. If you look at the decision that has been taken by the tribunal in Osun State, it is almost the same as this one. That the tribunal without evidence can go and look at the document that was tendered before it.
"I can assure you this judgement will not see the light of day in the Court of Appeal, by God's grace."
The APC lawyer, Sanusi Musa, SAN, said his team complained about three issues concerning the election, "That there was substantial noncompliance concerning refusal of INEC to apply the principle of margin of lead.
"Then the second thing is that we have clearly said Mr Abba Kabir Yusuf was not qualified to contest the election, because by the constitutional provision, Section 177 said that for somebody to participate in an election he must be a member of a political party and must be somebody sponsored by that political party.
"The third one is the issue of majority lawful votes cast, which we have successfully shown to the court that there was inflation of votes."
Ganduje, who spoke to journalists in Abuja after the ruling, commended the judiciary for delivering a fair and transparent judgement.
He stated, "Today (Wednesday) is a historic day. We thank Allah for providing an enabling environment for the judiciary to deliver fair, transparent judgement in our favour and judgement that is true (reflection of the wishes of the people).
"We thank the judiciary, our party leaders in our state, we thank the business community, the various support groups. We have to commend everybody in Kano State for being patient and continuous prayers for Allah to give us victory.
"We urge them to continue to be peaceful, to continue to conduct themselves in a peaceful manner. We assure the business community that our new government, if we come in, In Sha Allah, under our able governor, Dr Yusuf Gawana, that business will flourish in Kano."
Gawuna, on his part, commended the judiciary for being fair and also thanked Ganduje, whom he described as his mentor, for his support.
Gawuna said, "It is a day that Allah has made fruitful for us to emerge victorious based on the judgement of today and, Alhamdulillah, we have to thank the judiciary for being fair.
"We know Allah is the one that has done it for us before, He is the one that has done it now and, In Sha Allah, He will do it for us in the coming time. We pray that Allah will give us the health and life to be able to deliver to the people on the right path."
Gawuna promised to continue the good work started by Ganduje, and said he would be fair to all.
He added, "Commerce, education, health are areas we have highlighted in our blueprint during our campaign.
"In Sha Allah, we will continue with what we have said. We'll make sure Kano is free from insecurity and other vices. We appreciate the support from the state and beyond."
Kano Police Imposes Dusk-to-Dawn Curfew
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Kano State Police Command imposed a 24-hour curfew as part of measures to ensure law and order across the state.
In a press statement by the Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Usaini Gumel, the police warned residents to stay calm as violators of the peace would be arrested and made to face the wrath of the law.
The statement said, "In view of the constitutional mandate of the Nigeria Police Force, alongside the relevant Internal Security and Law Enforcement Agencies, to preserve law and order in the state, the Kano State Police Command has mapped out strategies in that direction and call on the good people of the state to give the necessary confidence and support.
"Going forward, Kano State residents are called upon to note that combined security forces have already been dispatched to the nooks and crannies, including the entry and exits of the state to ensure enforcement and strict compliance of the twenty-four hours (24hrs) curfew order."
Gumel noted that the order was "communicated by the State Government via letter with Reference No: K/SEC/H/435/T.1/153 dated 20th September 2023, taking effect from 6pm of Wednesday, 20th September, to 6pm of Thursday, 21st September 2023.
"Finally, I wish to appreciate all the peace-loving people of the state and urge them to remain law-abiding as it's in the best interest of all that we come together to maintain law and order in the state."
