Hon. Muktar Umar Yarima, a member of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) representing Tarauni Federal Constituency, has been dismissed from his position by the National and State House of Assembly Elections Petition Tribunal in Kano. This ruling, which occurred on Thursday, is based on allegations of certificate forgery.
The three-member panel of the Tribunal concluded that the primary school certificate presented by Yarima, the respondent, was fraudulent.
As a result, they directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to declare Honourable Hafizu Ibrahim Kawu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the rightful winner of the election. The Tribunal also instructed INEC to promptly issue Kawu a Certificate of Return.
In the initial general elections, Garba Galadanchi, the returning officer for Tarauni Federal Constituency, declared Yarima of the NNPP as the victor with 26,273 votes, surpassing Kawu of the APC, who secured 15,931 votes.
However, Kawu, who is a former member seeking re-election in the 2023 polls, brought the case to the tribunal, challenging Yarima’s victory on the grounds of a forged certificate and instances of irregularities, including over-voting and non-compliance with the electoral act.
Additional details will follow.
