‘Only tribunal has power to void election’ — Binani asks court to review Adamawa poll

Aisha ‘Binani’ Dahiru has asked a federal high court in Abuja to review the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to void her controversial declaration as the winner of the Adamawa governorship election.

The ex parte motion, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/510/2023, was filed on April 17.

The Adamawa governorship supplementary election was conducted on Saturday following the declaration of the March 18 poll as inconclusive over alleged irregularities.

The collation of election results was suspended till Sunday after results from 10 LGAs were announced.

However, INEC discontinued the exercise after Hudu Yunusa-Ari, the resident electoral commissioner, declared Binani, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as the winner.

Yunusa-Ari made the declaration when outstanding results were yet to be announced — but the electoral umpire subsequently described his action as null and void.

The electoral body said the declaration of a winner is the responsibility of the returning officer.

Binani consequently applied for leave of the court to allow her to seek, “an order of prohibition and certiorari removing to this court for the purpose of being set aside the administrative decision of the 1st respondent made on 16th April, 2023 in respect of the declaration of the winner from the gubernatorial election of Adamawa state held on the 18th of March, 2023 and the supplementary election held on 15th April, 2023”.

The APC candidate also wants an order “preventing the 1st respondent, its agent, assign or any person acting on its behalf from taking any further steps towards the declaration of the winner from the gubernatorial election of Adamawa state held on the 18th of March and the supplementary election held on 15th April 2023, pending the determination of the application for judicial review”.

She claimed that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Ahmadu Fintiri, governor of the state, resorted to stirring violence after she was declared the winner.

She averred that INEC staff were caught up in the violence and were manhandled which caused the electoral commission to cancel the initial declaration.

Binani submitted that INEC lacks the power to cancel an election result as such power is constitutionally vested in the election petition tribunal.

Through her lawyers led by Hussaini Zakariyau, a senior advocate of Nigeria, she said a judicial review exists to enable the superior court to checkmate the actions and decisions of inferior courts as well as the legislative and administrative arm of government including agencies and public officers.

The applicant further argued that INEC, being an agency of the government, can have its actions, records, and decisions checked by the court which can also nullify such actions and not the commission itself.