Sacked Kaduna assembly speaker regains position after winning rerun poll

The Kaduna state house of assembly has reelected Yusuf Liman as its speaker.

Liman was sworn in at plenary alongside three other elected members of the house, following their victory in the last Saturday by-election.

The other members of the house who were sworn in are Haruna Barnabas (Chawai constituency); Jesse David (Chikun constituency); and Nura Abubakar (Kudan constituency).

Yusuf, who was the former speaker of the assembly and the lawmaker representing Makera constituency, had his election nullified by the appeal court in November 2023.

The court, thereafter, ordered a rerun in five polling units in Makera constituency.

On Saturday, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Yusuf as the winner of the by-election for the constituency.

Liman, who was the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), polled 18,068 votes to defeat Solomon Katuka of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who secured 17,404 votes.

After the swearing in, Yusuf was nominated and elected as the speaker of the Kaduna assembly.

Addressing the house, Yusuf expressed his gratitude to the lawmakers.

He assured that the assembly will prioritise the interest of the people of the state.

“Let us reaffirm our dedication to the democracy, justice and progress. Let us remember the power bestowed upon us by the people of Kaduna comes with profound responsibility to uphold their interests and aspirations at all times,” he said.

Yusuf assured that the assembly will also collaborate with executives to address security concerns in the state.