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PAUL OMOKUVIE, BAUCHI
Bauchi State chapter of All Progressives Congress (APC) on Friday filed a petition at the election tribunal in the state challenging the outcome of the recent governorship election in which its candidate, Mohammed Abubakar, who is the incumbent governor lost to the People’s Democratic Part’s (PDP’s) Bala Mohammed.
Speaking with newsmen shortly after submitting the petition at the tribunal, the state APC Chairman, Uba Nana, said the party formally lodged its complaint against the election seeking justice.
The shocking development comes after the outgoing governor earlier conceded defeat and congratulated the governor-elect but later made a U-turn saying that the national leadership of the APC asked him to go to court.
Abubakar said he is a party loyalist and as such is in support of its new decision saying that the party had hired four Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) to file the case. He said he was hopeful that he would triumph in court.
In its reaction, PDP alleged that the litigation initiated by the outgoing governor was only meant to waste government resources boasting that court would reaffirm its victory.
State Publicity Secretary of the party, Yayanuwa Zainabari, who reacted to the development in an interview with reporters, said: “It was ridiculous for the governor to allege that he was rigged out when he is the one with incumbency power and has control of security agents.”
He claimed that the elections in all the local governments of the state were violent-free, adding that even in areas where results were cancelled, the supplementary election was conducted by INEC where their candidate won again.
He said over 50 independent lawyers had indicated an intention to defend the party’s candidate
