Kano State Governor Abba Yusuf responded to the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal’s decision on Wednesday.
In its judgement, the panel dismissed Yusuf and recognized Nasir Gawuna of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the state’s governorship election.
In his statement, Yusuf urged Kano residents to maintain calm while vowing to utilize all lawful means to restore his mandate.
While speaking to reporters, the Kano State Governor stated that the verdict was riddled with flaws and expressed confidence that these faults will be remedied in the appellate court.
He said, “My good people of Kano State! You would recall that on March 18, 2023, you came out en masse and voted for me as your Governor with a total vote of 1,019,602 and a margin of 128,897 votes between my humble self and second place.
“Subsequently, I was duly sworn in as your elected Governor on May 29, 2023. You may also recall that the party that lost the election took us to court.
“However, after almost six months of proceedings at the governorship election petition tribunal, today Wednesday, September 20, 2023, the judges of the tribunal have, in their own wisdom, delivered their ruling.
“As human beings, their judgement may not be absolutely perfect. There are errors and misapplication of the law as pointed out by our legal team. That is why our constitution provides for other stages to go on with- such as the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court.
“We have already instructed our legal team to appeal this judgement as soon as possible to ensure that justice is done.”
Yusuf urged Kano residents to remain peaceful and law abiding, while security agents were told to ensure the full safety of innocent civilians’ lives and property across the state.
He added, “This government will continue to work for the development of our State in line with the promises we made while seeking your votes. We want to assure you that this will neither dampen our spirit nor slow us down, as this is a temporary setback for our State which we will overcome by the grace of Almighty Allah (SWT).
“While thanking the good people of Kano State for their continuous support and prayer, let me further use this opportunity to call on them to continue to go about their businesses peacefully.”
