By Angela Atabo
Coalition of INEC Accredited Observer Organisations,have called on political elites in Kano to allow the people’s mandate to stand.
Dr Nwambu Gabriel, Convener of the Coalition ,made the call during a news conference on Monday in Abuja while reacting to the Kano State tribunal judgment on the government election.
The tribunal sacked Gov.Abba Yusuf of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) as governor and replaced him with Nadir Gawuna of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Gabriel said that as an organisation that observed the Kano Assembly Elections on March 18 the judgement had some issues.
“Members of the fourth Estate of the realm, you remain the watch-dogs of our society and also the conscience of truth in the face of imminent miscarriage of justice, we cry out to you as comrades in the crusade for justice and obedience to the rule of law.
“Our society dies the day law dies and law will die the day men and women of good conscience choose to remain silent in the face of tyranny.
“Law abhors unholy sacrifices in it’s chambers and today, with great trepidation, we bring to your attention an unholy sacrifice about to be consummated in the most sacred chambers of law.
“We as a Coalition of INEC Accredited Observer Organizations who observed the Kano State Governorship and States Assembly Elections of 18th March, 2023 hereby state as observed the following:
“That Justice Flora Azinge, one of the justices of the State Assembly tribunal raised alarm over an attempt to offer N10 million to one of his staff with the intension to subvert justice in course of the proceedings of the tribunal.”
Gabriel said that the above implied that there has been an unprecedented attempt to subvert justice and subvert the popular wish if the electorates in Kano state.
He added that the coalition observed the elections across the 44 LGAs of Kano state which seems like a revolution of some sort.
He said that the people of Kano state voted overwhelmly for the NNPP without fear or favour.
He added that the colation was dismayed and shocked at the tribunals ruling bothering on (i) the disqualification of the Governor of Kano state as member of the NNPP.
According to him, this matter is well known to all and sundry as a pre-election matter which the tribunal had no jurisdiction and beside, because it is a pre-election matter, the matter has been overtaken by events.
“(ii)Again, the nullification of over one hundred thousands valid votes which was an integral part of the power exercised by the electorates as enshrined in the 1999 constitution as amended has never been seen before in the history of Nigeria.
” It thus appears to us that their is a grand plan to truncate justice as seen in Kano state.
“We wish to state unequivocally that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), as an Electoral Management Body saddled with the constitutional responsibility of conducting transparent, free, fair and credible elections in Nigeria declared the NNPP candidate the winner of the 18th March election.
“This fact is consistent and synonymous with our observation in the field and this represents the direction of the vote cast on the election day,” he said.
Gabriel said that by this medium,the coalition wished to advice the political elites in Kano state to sheath their swords and allow the people’s votes to count.
According to him, Kano state is a cosmopolitan city in Nigeria, therefore igniting issues capable of causing breakdown of law and order would not be in the interest of the Nigerian nation.
He said that the present situation in Kano could deteriorate even further if not treated with utmost caution and urgency.
“The Judiciary is said to be the hope of the common man.We hereby advice that care should be taken in Kano state to resolve the present judicial process with utmost caution.” NAN
