The Supreme Court has declared the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Lawal Dauda, as the winner of Zamfara State’s March 18 governorship election.
The ruling comes after the apex court dismissed the appeal by former governor Bello Matawalle of the All-Progressives Congress (APC), citing insufficient evidence of irregularities or over-voting.
The legal battle began when the Court of Appeal in Abuja sacked Dauda in response to Matawalle’s appeal on November 16, 2023.
However, the Zamfara State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal later affirmed Dauda’s victory, dismissing Matawalle’s claims of wrongful collation of results and the absence of elections in certain wards.
Following his defeat, Matawalle was appointed as Minister of State, Defense, by President Bola Tinubu. Undeterred, he appealed the tribunal’s decision, arguing that Dauda did not secure the majority of lawful votes and that the election was inconclusive. The Appeal Court, led by Justice Oyebisi Folayemi, agreed, overturning the earlier verdict and ordering fresh elections in Maradun, Birnin Magaji, and Bukun Yum LGAs.
Justice Agim Emmanuel, reading the lead judgment, criticized the Appeal Court’s decision as “perverse,” emphasizing that polling units and ward results supported INEC’s declaration of Dauda as the winner.
The Supreme Court’s ruling has set aside the earlier judgment, declaring the March 2023 Zamfara State Governorship election inconclusive and directing INEC to conduct fresh elections in the specified LGAs.
