Insecurity: Zamfara elections tribunal relocates to Abuja

The Governorship, National and State House of Assembly Elections Tribunal for Zamfara State has relocated from Gusau, the state capital to Abuja over insecurity in the state.

The secretary of the tribunal, Barrister Innocent Akidi, made this known yesterday following the first sitting of the tribunal at the FCT High Court in Wuse Zone 2. He said there are at least 40 petitions already submitted before the tribunal.

The governorship elections tribunal is presided over by Justices Binta Fatima Zubairu (chairperson), Okey I. Nwamoh (Member) and A.Y. Ajanaku Makun (Member).

Earlier, the tribunal, during its first sitting in Abuja yesterday, ordered substituted service of processes on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate in the election, Idris Mukhtar Shehu, who is the governor-elect.

The trio is the respondents in the three petitions against the governorship election. The first petition was filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate in the election, Bello Muhammed Matawalle. The second petition was filed by Sani Abdullahi Shinkafi, the candidate of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) and the party.

The first petition was seeking among others the declaration of the tribunal that Shehu was not a candidate at the election held on March 9. It also asked for a declaration that all the votes credited to Shehu and APC are wasted and null votes.

It further asked for a declaration that, Matawalle, having “scored the majority of lawful votes cast at the election for the office of Zamfara state governor be and is hereby declared as the winner of the election,” and an order directing INEC to withdraw the certificate of return issued to Shehu and present a certificate of return to Matawalle.