Kebbi Senate seats: Court nullifies Aliero, ex-Senate leader’s PDP primary elections

A Federal High Court in Birnin Kebbi yesterday nullified the primary election that produced Senator Adamu Aliero as the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) for the Kebbi Central Senatorial District. The court ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission to substitute Aliero’s name with Haruna Saidu as the substantive PDP’s candidate for the senatorial […]

Kebbi Senate seats: Court nullifies Aliero, ex-Senate leader’s PDP primary elections

Senator Muhammed Adamu Aliero

A Federal High Court in Birnin Kebbi yesterday nullified the primary election that produced Senator Adamu Aliero as the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) for the Kebbi Central Senatorial District.

The court ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission to substitute Aliero’s name with Haruna Saidu as the substantive PDP’s candidate for the senatorial election.

Justice Babagan Ashigar ruled that the PDP did not give fair hearing to another aspirant, Haruna Saidu Dandio, following a petition of allegation of forged signatures.

The court held that Dandio was not served with a copy of the petition brought against him.

The judge said INEC unlawfully excluded the plaintiff’s name (Saidu Dandio) from the primary participated by Aliero when he had won the first primary and thus the primary that produced Aliero was a nullity.

He said the primary election conducted in the state in May was married by irregularities.

In another judgment, the court invalidated the election of a former Senate leader, Yahaya Abubakar Abdullahi, as the PDP’s candidate for Kebbi North Senatorial District and declared the plaintiff, Sani Bawa Argungu, as the party’s rightful candidate. 

Argungu had sued Abdullahi, PDP and INEC asking the court to declare him as the party’s candidate since the initial candidate duly nominated withdrew his candidacy

He had sought an order restraining PDP from forwarding Abdullahi’s name and any other name to INEC as the winner of the primary election.