The Sokoto Division of the Court of Appeal has reinstated Dauda Lawal as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in the March 11, 2022 elections in Zamfara State.
Recall that, earlier, a Federal High Court sitting in Gusau, the State capital, presided over by Justice Aminu Bappa-Aliyu, had nullified the PDP governorship primary election that produced Lawal as PDP governorship candidate and instead, ruled that the PDP had no gubernatorial candidate in the State.
But, in its ruling on Friday, the appellate court set aside a judgment of the lower Court.
All the members of the three-man panel of the Appeal Court in the concurred with the lead judgement of Justice Muhammad Shu’aibu, who ordered the Independent National Election Commission (INEC) to accept Lawal as the elected governorship candidate of the PDP in Zamfara State for the 2023 general election.
The panel said it was inconceivable for the Federal High Court Judge’s refusal to accept the INEC report of the primary election over claim that it was not certified despite being a public document and published on the INEC website.
The panel added that the appellant was not properly joined by the plaintiffs. Also, a court cannot grant a relief not sought by the plaintiff.
“The court is not Father Christmas,” the Appel Court ruled.
Reacting to the judgement, Dauda Lawal described the Appeal Court’s ruling in Sokoto as a victory for democracy and the good people of Zamfara State.
The PDP governorship candidate, who spoke through Dauda Lawal Media Office, said the Appeal Court judgment was a victory not only to the PDP but to the entire people of Zamfara yearning for good governance.
“The people are celebrating my appeal court judgement because of their conviction that Under my leadership, Zamfara State will be a reference point for new ideas, determination, dynamism, and endless possibilities,” he stated.
