Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in Nigeria have expressed displeasure over the conflicting orders of the federal and state high courts on the conduct of the local government election in Kano State slated for today.
While the Federal High Court in Kano disqualified all the candidates of the ruling New Nigerian Peoples Party (NNPP) and cleared the factional candidates of the party, the state high court approved the mainstream contestants.
The state court also declared the Kano State Electoral Commission competent to conduct the election contrary to the decision of its federal counterpart.
In a reaction to the contradictory judgements, the CSOs lamented that politicians have bastardised the integrity of the judiciary in the country and sending a wrong signal to the international community.
The CSOs who spoke to LEADERSHIP Sunday include the Transition Monitoring Group (TMG), Transparency International (TI), the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) and Yiaga Africa.
Speaking through their leader, Awwal Musa Rafsanjani, the groups expressed concern that the judiciary had become a joke.
“The judiciary has become a joke. Politicians have turned the judiciary into an institution of irresponsibility. The politicians are determining the integrity of the judiciary which is bad,” Rafsanjani said.
According to him, “Some people are determined not to allow the Kano State government to operate and they have employed some merchants in the judiciary to achieve their goal.
“Once there is judicial corruption in place, no integrity. The international community is watching how a very important institution has been turned to corrupt utilisation of politicians,” Rafsanjani said.
Also, Yiaga Africa in a report shared with LEADERSHIP Weekend by their executive director, Samson Itodo, said local government elections in Nigeria were critical for promoting democratic governance and addressing local community needs, insisting that its conduct must be credible.
“Credible elections are essential for reinforcing democracy at the grassroots level and giving citizens a meaningful voice.
“However, challenges such as judicial and state interference, electoral violence, low voter turnout, and logistical inefficiencies undermine the effectiveness of these elections.
“These systemic issues must be addressed to improve the integrity and credibility of future elections.
“To enhance local governance, it is crucial to strengthen State Independent Electoral Commissions (SIECs), promote civic education, ensure transparency in electoral processes, and foster genuine political competition. Addressing these issues will improve the credibility of local government elections in Nigeria.
“Additionally, establishing an index for assessing electoral integrity can serve as a framework for peer review, monitoring, and advocating for improvements. This will enhance local election integrity.
“A renewed commitment to free and fair elections is essential for strengthening democracy and ensuring effective representation of citizens in governance,” the CSOs added.
Justice Sanusi Ma’aji of the Kano State High Court yesterday cleared the state Independent Electoral Commission (KANSIEC) to proceed with the election billed for today.
This ruling came just three days after a Federal High Court in Kano had issued a restraining order, preventing KANSIEC from conducting the elections until it appointed a qualified chairman, secretary, commissioners, and other officials.
But in his judgment yesterday, Justice Ma’aji stated that KANSIEC had the constitutional authority to conduct, supervise, and hold local government elections across the state’s 44 council areas. He emphasized that halting the election process would be a violation of this constitutional mandate.
Ma’aji also directed security agencies to ensure the protection of life and property during the elections on Saturday.
The counsel for the plaintiffs, Rilwanu Umar (SAN) described the judgment as “sound.”
Meanwhile, Nura Adamu, representing the 7th defendants (APC), clarified that their legal challenge was not against KANSIEC’s authority to hold elections but rather the composition of its leadership, which they argued contravenes both the Constitution and Kano State Independent Electoral Commission law of 2001. He added that they would review the judgment to determine their next steps.
In response to the ruling, KANSIEC commissioner for legal and voter matters, Barrister Mukhtar Dandago, confirmed that the elections would proceed as planned and urged the residents to participate in voting. Dandago also noted that KANSIEC had filed an appeal with the Court of Appeal challenging the earlier Federal High Court judgment.
Federal Court Disqualifies NNPP Candidates From Election
In a dramatic turn yesterday evening, Justice Simon Amobeda issued another ruling disqualifying the candidates of the NNPP that were not submitted to KANSIEC by the faction of the party led by Dalhatu Shehu Usman.
He also restrained the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from releasing the voters’ register to KANSIEC to conduct the election today.
He also instructed KANSIEC to accept as genuine the list of candidates submitted to it by the Dalhatu Shehu Usman faction of the NNPP and rejected the list of candidates recognised by the state government.
The judge instructed the inspector-general of police and director-general of Department of State Services (DSS) from providing any protection at the scene of the election in Kano.
The case is between the NNPP, one Engr Muhammad Bababyo standing as the plaintiff against the defendants, INEC, KANSIEC, IG, DG of DSS who were the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th defendants.
Election Holds Today, State Govt Restricts Movement
Meanwhile, the state government has restricted vehicular movements and business activities to ensure hitch-free conduct of the election.
Addressing newsmen yesterday, the commissioner, legal and voters’ matters for KANSIEC, Muntari Garba, called on the people to come out today to exercise their franchise.
He said, “I want to send a goodwill message to the peace-loving people of Kano that based on the ruling of Justice Ma’aji of the State High Court today (yesterday), there is no going back on the local government election in Kano tomorrow (today).
“KANSIEC is going to conduct the election God willing. There is nobody, or any political party or association or institution that can stop KANSIEC from conducting the elections.
“So, I want to use this medium to call on the good people of Kano and political parties that passed our screening to inform their supporters to come out and exercise their constitutional rights to vote,” he stated.
Similarly, the commissioner for information, Baba Halilu Dantiye, said the restriction on movement was aimed at ensuring peaceful and orderly conduct of the election which would be held in all 484 wards across the 44 LGAs of the state.
In a statement, Dantiye said, “Persons on official election duties and those engaged in essential services are however exempted from the restriction.
“All eligible voters are advised to come out to exercise their civic rights by participating peacefully in the electoral process to strengthen democracy in the state.”
Meanwhile, the Kano State Government, in consultation with security agencies, has placed restrictions on movement of persons and vehicles across the state from 12: 00 midnight on Friday to 6:00 pm on Saturday.
The government, he said, reaffirmed its commitment to conducting a free, fair, credible and peaceful election, and therefore urges all citizens to comply with the movement restriction in the interest of public safety and electoral integrity.
Also, Governor Abba Yusuf has presented flags of the NNPP to 44 chairmanship candidates of the party in the election, reiterating that there is ‘no retreat, no surrender’ over the poll.
The presentation was held at the Sani Abacha Indoor Stadium on Thursday which witnessed a mammoth crowd.
The spokesperson to the governor, Sunusi Bature, in a statement made available to journalists on Friday, quoted the governor as emphasising that the state at the moment would not allow anybody to destabilise the existing peace being enjoyed by the citizenry, noting that the state government and KANSIEC had all the constitutional backings to hold the election.
APC Withdraws From Race, Warns Against Anarchy
Ahead of the contest, the All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday warned Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf to desist from taking any action that could lead to breakdown of law and order in the state.
The chairman of the Kano chapter of the APC, Abdullahi Abbas, in a statement said Governor Yusuf’s incisive statement at a rally in the Kano metropolis on Thursday was unbecoming of someone who was supposed to be the chief security officer of the state.
While six parties were cleared for the race, the APC pulled out of it, citing the court verdict.
The participating parties are the NNPP, ZLP, Accord Party, NRM, AAC and AA.
The APC called on the state government to adhere to the directive of the Federal High Court in Kano presided over by Justice Simon Amobeda which on Tuesday restrained KANSIEC from holding the council poll after sacking the chairman, secretary and commissioners of the agency.
The party noted that the call by the governor on NNPP supporters to ignore the court directive was a clear case of an invitation to anarchy and lawlessness.
“The governor should simply respect the laws. As law-abiding citizens interested in the growth of our dear state of Kano, the governor should desist from any act that could throw the state into chaos. Inciting people to take the laws into their hand is not the hallmark of good leadership,” the party noted.
We’ll Maintain Law And Order – Police
In another development, the spokesperson of the Kano State Police Command, Abdullahi Kiyawa, in a video posted on its official WhatsApp platform said it would strictly adhere to item nine of Justice Amobeda’s judgement which ordered the police, NSCDC and DSS not to be involved in the poll.
He however said that as part of its mandate to protect life and property, the state commissioner of police, CP Salman Dogo, has ordered a round-the-clock visibility patrol to ensure safety of all and maintain law and order.
He directed the command’s operational commanders to enhance patrols, intensify intelligence gathering, improve response time and foster community engagement.
