The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has challenged the declaration of Governor Abubakar Sani Bello and his deputy, Alhaji Ahmad Mohammad Ketso, as winners in the March 9, 2019 Governorship election in the state in the tribunal.
A week after the governorship election, the PDP at an enlarged stakeholders’ meeting in Minna, the state capital, set up a Legal Advisory Committee headed by Alhaji Mohammed Ndayako, the deputy governorship candidate, to advise it on whether to pursue the case in court or not.
Based on the committee’s report, which reportedly submitted its findings to the state’s party chairman, Alhaji Tanko Beji, on Wednesday, the party resolved to seek redress in the tribunal.
A petition was immediately filed before the tribunal in Minna on Wednesday. Joined in the petition were the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
The petition was premised on two planks, alleged presentation of fake academic certificates to the INEC by Bello and Ketso and alleged malpractices discovered during the election in almost all the 25 local governments areas of the state.
According to the petition, there were glaring discrepancies in the academic certificates as presented to the INEC, which should have led to his disqualification or ineligible to contest the governorship election.
The petitioner questioned among other things, the graduation date as contained in the academic records presented by Bello to the INEC, reportedly acquired from the University of Maiduguri, and the period he took part in the mandatory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme.
By the academic records presented to the INEC, the petitioner argued that there were glaring evidence of contradictions and possibilities that Bello could not have completed his academic programme and took part in the NYSC while still in university.
The petitioner also alleged that the first defendant erred in law when he reportedly deposed personally to his declaration of age by signing for himself and his father, Colonel Sani Bello (rtd).
The certificate presented by Ketso, which carried different spellings in his names, which he claimed were obtained in Lavun Local Government Area of the state, whereas Ketso was in Mokwa local government in 2006 when the certificate was obtained, the petitioner also pointed out.
When contacted, Alhaji Mohammed Yahaya, the Director General, Mohammed Umar Nasko Governorship Campaign Organisation, confirmed the filing of the petition.