A federal high court in Abuja has refused to hear an
ex-parte application by Aisha ‘Binani’ Dahiru seeking to restrain the
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from invalidating her
declaration as winner of the Adamawa
state governorship election.
At the court session on Tuesday, Inyang Ekwo, presiding
judge, asked Binani’s lawyer, Mohammed Sherif, to first address the issues of
jurisdiction before hearing the substantive motion.
The court ordered Binani to file her address on whether the
court has jurisdiction to hear the application within two days.
Afeez Matomi, counsel to Ahmadu Fintiri, governor of
Adamawa, who was in court was not allowed to make submissions since the APC
candidate brought the action through an ex-parte application.
Ekwo thereafter adjourned the suit till April 26.
The Adamawa governorship supplementary election was
conducted on Saturday following the declaration of the March 18 poll as
inconclusive over alleged irregularities.
The collation of election results was suspended till Sunday
after results from 10 LGAs were announced.
However, INEC discontinued the exercise after Hudu
Yunusa-Ari, the resident electoral commissioner, declared Binani, candidate of
the All Progressives Congress (APC), as the winner.
Yunusa-Ari made the declaration when outstanding results
were yet to be announced — but the electoral umpire subsequently described his
action as null and void.
The electoral body said the declaration of a winner is the
responsibility of the returning officer.
This made Binani approach the court with an ex-parte motion.
Binani applied for leave of the court to allow her to seek,
“an order of prohibition and certiorari removing to this court for the purpose
of being set aside the administrative decision of the 1st respondent made on 16th
April 2023 in respect of the declaration of the winner from the gubernatorial
election of Adamawa state held on the 18th of March, 2023 and the supplementary
election held on 15th April, 2023”.
The APC candidate also wants an order “preventing the 1st
respondent, its agent, assign or any person acting on its behalf from taking
any further steps towards the declaration of the winner from the gubernatorial
election of Adamawa state held on the 18th of March and the supplementary
election held on 15th April 2023, pending the determination of the application
for judicial review”.
She claimed that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its
candidate, Fintiri, resorted to stirring violence after she was declared the
winner.
She averred that INEC staff were caught up in the violence
and were manhandled which caused the electoral commission to cancel the initial
declaration.
Binani submitted that INEC lacks the power to cancel an
election result as such power is constitutionally vested in the election
petition tribunal.
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