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The election petition tribunal in Kano State has rejected the representation of Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate, Abba Yusuf, at the tribunal.
Led by Justice Halima Mohammad, the tribunal raised objection at the resumption of the pre-trial, insisting that the second defendant (Ganduje) and the petitioner (Yusuf) should appear in person and not by proxy.
The objection came when former Commissioner for Water Resources and frontier of the Kwankwasiyya Movement, Dr. Yunusa Dangoni, announced his representation for the PDP governorship candidate. Similar declaration came from immediate past Commissioner for Special Duties, Muktar Yakasai, on behalf of Ganduje.
Unsatisfied with the representations, Justice Mohammad was quick to interject further appearance, reminding that only political parties were mandated by law to file representatives.
Also, the tribunal dismissed the application by the PDP to amend its witness list and oath of statement against the defendants.
The petitioner, Yusuf, had filed a motion seeking to correct errors on the list of witnesses in the original petition, to inject additional eight star witnesses on the list.
Lead counsel to the petitioner, Chief Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), while filing the motion, insisted that the application was not meant to amend or alter the original content of the petition, but to rectify errors.
But counsel the to first, second and third respondents unanimously opposed the application, arguing that such attempt would amount to breach of the constitution.
Leader of Ganduje’s legal research team posited that PDP’s application was a tactical means of amending the petition, which was alien in law.
In her ruling, Justice Mohammad declared that PDP’s application lacked the impetus and merit in the electoral law and the constitution.
She maintained that PDP had exhausted the 21 days privilege within which a petitioner could amend petition.
She fixed Monday, July 22, 2019 for the beginning of the governorship election petition trial.