Adamawa guber poll: Court dismisses Aisha Binani’s suit against INEC
Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court Abuja has dismissed the suit filed by the Adamawa governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Aisha Ahmed Binani, seeking to be affirmed as the winner of the election..
Justice Ekwo dismissed the suit following a notice of discontinuance that was filed by the plaintiff.
Mohammed Sheriff, Binani’s counsel, had asked the court to strike out the suit.
However, the judge held that the lawyer failed to address the court on the issue of jurisdiction as ordered on April 18, consequently, he said the appropriate order would be to dismiss the suit.
Recall that the Adamawa governorship supplementary election was conducted on April 15 following the declaration of the March 18 poll as inconclusive over alleged irregularities.
After voting ended, the collation of results began at the state collation centre but the exercise was suspended after results from 10 LGAs were announced.
However, the Resident Electoral Commissioner of Adamawa State, Hudu Yunusa-Ari, declared Binani as the winner before the collation resumed on April 16.
Yunusa-Ari made the declaration when outstanding results were yet to be announced.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) subsequently described his action as null and void.
The electoral body said the declaration of a winner is the responsibility of the returning officer.
For this reason, Binani approached 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 requested 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, Ahmadu 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 also submitted that INEC lacks the power to cancel an election result as such power is constitutionally vested in the election petition tribunal.
