Supreme Court Strikes Nasko’s Appeal, Affirms Bello’s Election as Niger Gov
POLITICS DIGEST – The Supreme Court on Wednesday struck out an appeal challenging the election of Governor Abubakar Sani Bello of Niger state in the March 9, 2019 election.
The appeal filed by Umar Mohammed Nasko of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was struck out by the Supreme Court for lack of merit.
In her judgment, Justice Mary Uwani Abaji held that the Supreme Court will not tamper with the concurrent decisions of both the Court of Appeal and the election petition turbinal.
In the unanimous judgment, Justice Abaji held that the Court of Appeal was right in holding that the decision of the tribunal delivered outside the 180 days allowed by law was a nullity.
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Justice Abaji further held that a judgment already declared a nullity by the Appeal Court cannot confer any benefit on the PDP candidate and any other party.
The judge therefore agreed that the Supreme Court has no jurisdiction to entertain the appeal and consequently struck it out for want of jurisdiction.
Nasco had challenged the election of Governor Bello at the tribunal on the ground that the governor submitted forged documents and gave false information in his form CF001 submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission to secure clearance for the March 9, 2019 election.
The tribunal however failed to deliver judgment in the petition within 180 days allowed by law, prompting the Appeal Court to declare judgment of the tribunal a nullity, having been delivered outside the required period.
A seven man panel of the apex court Justices led by Justice Bode Rhodes Vivour heard the matter while justice Abaji delivered the lead judgement.
