Adamawa guber poll: Tribunal affirms Fintiri’s election

The Adamawa State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Yola on Saturday affirmed the election of Governor Ahmadu Fintiri.

The tribunal dismissed the petition filed against Fintiri’s election by the All Progressives Congress, APC, and its candidate, Aishatu Ahmed Dahiru (Binani).

Chairman of the 3-member panel, Justice Theodora Obi Uloho, said the petitioners failed to establish their allegations of non-compliance with the Electoral Act.

She said all documents tendered by the petitioners were dumped on the tribunal and that their star witness did not link any of the documents with any of their material allegations.

The tribunal held that the petitioners failed to prove their case beyond reasonable doubt.

The panel equally held that the declaration of Binani as winner of the poll by the suspended Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, Hudu Ari-Yunusa, was null and void.

Justice Uloho noted that Hudu acted recklessly because it is not his function to declare the winner of the election.

In their petition, Binani and APC joined the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri and the PDP, as 1st to 3rd respondents respectively.

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Binani and APC jointly filed the petition on the 6th of May, 2023, alleging that the election conducted first on the 18th March, 2023 and the rerun on 15th April, were marred by thuggery, ballot papers and BVA snatching, and harassment of electoral officers.

They also claimed that the election was violated by substantial non-compliance with statutory requirements of the Electoral Act, all of which mean that Fintiri was not duly elected by the majority of lawful votes cast during the election.

Binani asked the tribunal to declare her validly elected and returned as winner of the exercise, and to order INEC to issue her with certificate of return as the duly elected Governor of Adamawa State.

In his response at the tribunal, Fintiri rejected all the allegations as contained in the petition, and urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition in its entirety.

Fintiri who made a broadcast immediately after the judgement was passed on Saturday, said the judiciary had proved once again that judgement is not a product on the shelf for anyone with money to buy.

He however said his arms were wide open for true reconciliation and appealed to all the litigants to join him in developing Adamawa State