Supporters of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) have been protesting the Appeal Court’s decision to remove Governor Abba Yusuf of Kano State.
This time, it was the women supporters of the party who took their grievances to the police headquarters in Kano to protest what they believe is an unfair ruling by the appellate court.
Despite warnings from the police, hundreds of women dressed in red and carrying placards marched from the residence of the party’s presidential candidate, Rabiu Kwankwaso, to the police headquarters on Sunday.
They are demanding justice and asserting that Governor Yusuf rightfully won the March governorship election in the North-West state. Some of the protesters have also turned to spiritual means as they continue their demonstrations.
The most recent protest is the third one that has occurred about a week after the court’s decision.
The Appeal Court removed the governor of the state because they believed he was not eligible to run in the election.
The court stated that the party’s choice of Yusuf as their candidate violated the Electoral Law because he did not meet the qualifications to participate in the election.
As a result, the court declared Nasiru Gawuna from the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner. However, both the NNPP and Governor Yusuf have rejected the court’s decision and have taken the case to the Supreme Court to challenge the verdict.
Governor Yusuf, who defeated the ruling APC in the state to win the election, has called the court’s decision a “miscarriage of justice.”
“After careful study and rigorous stakeholder engagement, my team and the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), have decided to approach the Supreme Court on the miscarriage of justice, delivered by the Appeal Court, yesterday in Abuja,” he said in a broadcast to residents of the state.
His party considers the dismissal of their sole governor as one of the most absurd rulings in the history of the country.
“In spite of overwhelming evidence presented to the tribunal by our team of lawyers, the tribunal passed one of the most ridiculous judgments in the history of election jurisprudence in Nigeria and unjustly declared the APC candidate, who had never joined the petition, as the winner of the election,” the party’s Acting National Chairman Abba Ali said.
“It is therefore unbelievable that the appeal court will refuse to look at the merit of our party’s appeal and cling to the erroneous issue of membership that has already been settled severally [sic] by both the appeal and Supreme Court.”
After the ruling, a Certified True Copy (CTC) of the verdict surfaced, revealing inconsistencies with the court’s decision both in favor of and against Governor Yusuf. However, the court promptly addressed this issue, attributing it to a clerical error. It emphasized that the judgment to remove the Kano governor still stands.
The APC has already expressed satisfaction with the ruling, stating that it demonstrates the judiciary’s genuine independence. This sentiment is further reinforced by the verdict on the Zamfara governorship election.
“Both judgments underscore the vibrancy and independence of the judiciary and rekindle confidence that the courts are, and remain, the bastion of hope for justice in any democracy,” APC spokesman Felix Morka argued.
