On November 13, 2023, the Court of Appeal in Abuja is set to resume the hearing of the appeal filed by the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Sokoto State, Sai’du Umar, against Governor Ahmed Aliyu of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Earlier this year, the three-man Elections Petitions Tribunal, led by Justice Haruna Msheila, unanimously dismissed the PDP’s petitions, citing the failure to prove six grounds formulated in the petition. The grounds included alleged ineligibility, falsification of certificates, variation of names, election fraud, and non-compliance with electoral guidelines by Aliyu and Gobir.
The Tribunal Chairman highlighted that the petitioners were unable to substantiate their allegations beyond reasonable doubt, emphasizing that 70 percent of exhibits were irrelevant as they pertained to state assembly elections conducted simultaneously. The tribunal further noted that proof of forgery required presenting the makers of the documents, and issues like the variation of names were settled by Supreme Court provisions.
Additionally, the Tribunal Chairman stated that three subpoena witnesses were not valid as they were not makers of the documents from the alleged primary school, and the other 28 polling units’ agenda testified individuals could not identify themselves along with their roles. The alleged 138 polling units’ frauds were also considered insufficient to indicate substantial non-compliance that could have affected the election outcome.
