BY IBrahim Danladi
The Court of Appeal in Abuja has invalidated the election of the incumbent Senator representing Adamawa North Senatorial District, Elisha Ishaku Abbo, of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the duly elected Senator in the February 25th National Assembly poll.
In a significant turn of events, the Appeal Court has reinstated the appellant, Rev. Amos Kumai Yohanna of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), as the duly elected Senator. Furthermore, the court ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to retrieve the Certificate of Return that was initially awarded to the 2nd Respondent (Abbo) and transfer it to the 1st Petitioner, Rev. Yohanna.
In the original results announced by INEC on February 27, Senator Abbo, running under the APC, was declared the winner with 71,927 votes, defeating Rev. Yohanna, the PDP candidate, who secured 61,895 votes.
Dissatisfied with this outcome, the PDP and Rev. Yohanna sought recourse at the tribunal. Rev. Yohanna, in his petition, alleged that the election of Senator Abbo was tainted by corrupt practices and non-compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022.
He contended that Senator Abbo was not validly elected by the majority of lawful votes cast during the election, citing over-voting at various polling units, false entries, alteration, and cancellation of votes at several polling units. He also raised concerns about alterations and cancellations that were not signed by the presiding officers of the polling units.
Rev. Yohanna requested the tribunal to annul Senator Abbo’s election and declare him as the duly elected candidate for the Northern Senatorial seat, as he had garnered the highest number of lawful votes during the exercise.
However, the tribunal, in its previous ruling, dismissed the petition and even awarded damages, ordering the petitioner to pay N600,000 to Senator Abbo. Unhappy with this outcome, Rev. Yohanna pursued his case further, ultimately finding success at the Court of Appeal for National Assembly Petitions.
It’s noteworthy that the political dynamics in Adamawa North have been influenced by Governor Ahmadu Fintiri, who is believed to have supported the PDP candidate against Senator Abbo, a former PDP member who switched to the APC due to internal party conflicts following their shared victory in 2019.