The Zamfara State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Sokoto, has reserved judgement on the petition filed by Bello Matawalle, challenging the election that brought in Dauda Lawal as the governor of the state.
The three-man panel of justices led by Justice Cordelia Ogadi reserved the judgement for a day to be communicated to the parties, after the three respondents and the petitioner, Bello Matawalle, had adopted their written addresses to close their arguments and presentations of witnesses.
The first respondent was Dauda Lawal, the second, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and the third was the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
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They prayed the Zamfara State Governorship Election Tribunal to discountenance and dismiss the petition filed by Bello Matawalle, challenging the March 18 Governorship Election, for lacking merit.
The three respondents cited Oyetola versus Ademola, arguing that the petitioner had failed to prove his case, and they, therefore, urged the tribunal to dismiss the petition.
The lead counsel for the first respondent, Dauda Lawal, Barrister Damian Dodo, told journalists shortly after the adoption of the written addresses, that they prayed for the tribunal to dismiss the petition for lack of substantial evidence
Lead counsel for the petitioner, Usman Sule, said in their submission that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, had unlawfully excluded the result sheet of 98,564 votes in the Maradun Local Government Area of the state, and the elections were not concluded in some local government areas, but a winner was declared.
He submitted that based on the evidence presented before the 2023 Zamfara State Governorship Electron Tribunal, they are hopeful that the judgement will be in the petition’s favour.
The March 18 Governorship Election in Zamfara State was keenly contested by the then-incumbent Governor Bello Matawalle of the All Progressives Congress, APC, and Dauda Lawal of the Opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in which Dauda Lawal defeated the incumbent governor to become governor of the state.
It is the outcome of that election which Bello Matawalle is challenging at the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Sokoto State, Northwest Nigeria.
Editor Paul Akhagbemhe
