Taiwo Popoola
A fresh controversy has hit Saturday’s local government election in Kano State as a Federal High Court on Friday sacked the 44 chairmanship and councillorship candidates of the ruling New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP.
Justice Simon Amobede sacked the NNPP candidates while delivering judgment in a suit filed by a faction of the party led by Dalhatu Shehu Usman.
The judge asked the faction to submit its list of candidates to the Kano State Independent Electoral Commission, KANSIEC, for clearance.
The defendants in the case are the Independent National Electoral Commission, Kano State Independent Electoral Commission, Inspector General of Police and Director, Department of Security Services (DSS).
Upon hearing the originating summons filed and dated 8th October, 2024, Justice Simon Amobede restrained INEC from releasing the voters register to KANSIEC.
The court also ordered the acceptance of the list submitted by the plaintiffs.
“The 1st defendant (INEC) is hereby restrained from releasing the voters register for the 2nd defendant (KANSIEC) to conduct the proposed election on 26th October 2024.
“The 2nd defendant (KANSIEC) is hereby directed to accept as genuine and subsisting, the list of NNPP candidates submitted to it by the recognized State Chairman of the party Dalhatu Shehu Usman, which is in accordance with the party Constitution, and reject any list of candidates submitted to it by anyone else for the 2024 Local Government Election in Kano State.
“That the 3rd and 4th defendants (Police and DSS) are forthwith restrained from providing security and protection to the scene of the election planned to take place on the 26th October, 2024.”
