Reviewing the dismissal of governors is necessary to evaluate the validity of judgments – Falana

The decisions of the appellate court dismissing Governors Abba Yusuf of Kano State and Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau State should be reviewed, according to Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Femi Falana. This is because the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) did not fulfil its obligation to hold legitimate elections in the nation.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics programme, Falana argued that the votes of Nigerians should not be thrown away by the legal system due to the purported incompetence of the election umpire, who ought not to have approved candidates nominated by parties without holding primaries.

Additionally, he stated that the failure of INEC personnel to stamp ballot sheets should not result in the court invalidating thousands of votes.

The top attorney believes that election-related issues had to be resolved prior to the start of any administrations.

The appellate court removed three governors who INEC had pronounced the winners of the March 2023 election within the past week. The appeal court removed three governors, all of whom are members of opposing parties.

The court dismissed Yusuf from the New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) and proclaimed Nasir Gawuna, the nominee for the All Progressives Congress (APC), the victor of the election.

Eight months after the poll was deemed inconclusive, the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) governor in Zamfara was fired by the appellate court. The court mandated that INEC hold new elections in the state’s three local government districts. The two front-runners in the contest are Bello Matawalle of the APC and Lawal of the PDP.

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The appellate court dismissed Mutfwang of the PDP on Sunday and directed INEC to provide Nentawe Goshwe of the APC a Certificate of Return. The party, according to the court, disobeyed the injunction for a legitimate congress to be held in each of the state’s 17 local government districts.

But the APC’s Babajide Sanwo-Olu was elected governor of Lagos State, and the appellate court upheld that decision.

Speaking about the appellate court’s rulings, Falana claimed that INEC had not done enough research prior to and during the elections.

He noted that anyone unhappy with the decisions made by the appeals court could appeal to the Supreme Court.

“If you compare what happened in Plateau with what happened in Lagos, you will see differences. You are being informed in Plateau that there was a high court ruling requiring the holding of primaries. The election proceeded despite the customary disrespect and disregard for the ruling, according to the lead attorney.

He asserted that the political elite needs to learn to abide by the court’s ruling.

“This is not Kano, where you are informed that votes may face consequences. Punishing voters for election officials’ errors is a very risky legal strategy. It has been reported to us that 165,000 votes were cast in error by certain electoral authorities, rendering them void. What impact does that have on the election’s legitimacy?

“I sincerely hope that the Supreme Court will finally put an end to these pointless disputes regarding INEC officials’ failure to stamp ballots, despite their not being advised to face any consequences.