The 2023 general election in Nigeria has remained one of the historic and dynamic polls in the country’s political history, with strong participation from the youths and the emergence of third forces that made strong statements during the process.
Despite the criticism of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the judiciary, the election was not the usual narrative between the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the leading opposition, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Full list of governors court has sacked since after 2023 election Photo Credit: Dauda Lawal, Abdullahi Sule, Abba Kabir Yusuf.
2023 election and the third forces
The third forces, the Labour Party (LP) and the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), challenged the statuesque. They made landmark victories by winning the governorship and national and state assembly seats.
A development can be attributed to the neutrality and credibility of the electoral umpire, INEC.
Barely nine months after the governorship election, the judiciary has also proved its worth, as it has sacked at least four governors after the parties have presented their arguments.
Below is the list of the governors that have been sacked so far:
Alex Otti
Elected under the Labour Party, Alex Otti was the first governor sacked by the Federal High Court sitting in Kano.
The court, in suit number FHC/KN/CS/107/2023 filed by one Ibrahim Haruna Ibrahim, nullified the candidature of Otti and other Labour Party victors in the poll over the failure of their party to submit the list of its members to INEC 30 days before the election.
Fast forwarded to the October, the Court of Appeal sitting in Kano dismissed the judgment of the lower court and upheld the candidature of the governor and other Labour Party candidates.
Abba Kabir Yusuf
The Kano state governor was another product of revolution in the March 18 governorship election, but his victory has been shattered by the tribunal sitting in the state and declared Nasir Yusuf Gawuna as the authentic winner of the poll.
Justice Oluyemi Osadebay-led panel sacked Governor Yusuf on September 20, when 165,663 of his votes were declared invalid as they were not signed nor stamp by INEC.
The court then reduced the votes of the NNPP candidate to 853,939 while the APC Gawuna 890,705 votes did not change.
However, the Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja would be giving its verdict on the redress sought by Governor Yusuf over his sacking by the Kano state governorship election petition tribunal
Abdullahi Sule The governorship tribunal sitting in Lafia, the Nasarawa state capital, sacked Governor Sule of the APC and declared David Ombugadu of the PDP as the winner of the guber election in the state. Two of the judges agreed that Governor Sule did not win the election while one other member of the tribunal had a dissenting opinion. However, the governor has appealed the judgment and he was expected to know his fate before the end of November. Dauda Lawal The PDP governor of Zamfara state became the latest casualty when the Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja declared his election inconclusive.
Lawal had earlier won at the governorship election tribunal sitting in Gusau, the Zamfara but Bello Matawalle and the APC, who are the petitioners, have sought for a redress at the appellate court.
The Court of Appeal on Thursday, November 16, ordered INEC to conduct a rerun in three local governments of the state, which are Maradun, Birnin Magaji and Bukuyun.
Legit.ng earlier reported that Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf of Kano and his counterpart in Plateau state, Caleb Mutfwang, would know their fate this week.
The report that the Court of Appeal will deliver judgment on petitions against them this week has created tensions in the two northern states.
Kano and Plateau are historically known for religious, ethnic and political crises that have claimed many lives and properties.
