Abba Yusuf, the Governor of Kano, has stated that he has instructed his legal team to file an appeal against the ruling of the election petition tribunal that invalidated his electoral victory.
In a message shared on the platform X on Wednesday night, Yusuf described the tribunal’s ruling as a “temporary setback.”
The tribunal, which delivered its judgment via Zoom, ordered the INEC to withdraw the certificate of return issued to Yusuf. The tribunal ordered that they affirm Yusuf Gawuna of APC as the duly elected governor of the state.
Following the judgment, the Kano police command imposed a 24-hour curfew in the state. This is to prevent a breakdown of law and order.
Nevertheless, the governor has called on residents to remain “calm and law-abiding,”
He emphasized that people should not take the law into their own hands.
Abba has also directed security agents to ensure the full protection of “lives and property of innocent citizens across the state.”
He wrote:
“You would recall that on March 18, 2023, you came out en mass and voted for me as your Governor. With a total vote of 1,019,602 and a margin of 128,897 votes between my humble self and second place”.
“Subsequently, I was duly sworn in as your elected Governor on May 29, 2023. You may also recall that the party that lost the election took us to court.
“However, after almost six months of proceedings at the governorship election petition tribunal, the judges have in their own wisdom delivered their ruling.
“As human beings, their judgement may not be absolutely perfect. There are errors and misapplication of the law as pointed out by our legal team.
“That is why our constitution provides for other stages to go on with such as the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.
“On this note, we have already instructed our legal team to appeal this judgement as soon as possible. This is to ensure that justice is done.
“I therefore call on all the good people of Kano State to be calm and remain law-abiding. People should not take the law into their hands. Security agents have already been directed to ensure the full protection of lives and property of innocent citizens across the State.
“We want to assure you that this will neither dampen our spirit nor slow us down, as this is a temporary setback for our State which we will overcome by the grace of Almighty Allah (SWT).”