The Federal High Court has disqualified all 44 chairmanship and councillorship candidates of the ruling New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) in Kano State, just 24 hours before the local government elections.
Justice Simon Amobede delivered the judgment in a suit filed by a faction of the party led by Dalhatu Shehu Usman.
The court ordered the faction to submit its list of candidates to the Kano State Independent Electoral Commission (KANSIEC) for clearance.
The judge restrained the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from releasing the voters register to KANSIEC for the election scheduled for October 26, 2024. Instead, KANSIEC was directed to accept the list submitted by Dalhatu Shehu Usman, recognizing him as the authentic State Chairman of NNPP.
Justice Amobede ruled: “The 1st defendant (INEC) is hereby restrained from releasing the voters register for the 2nd defendant (KANSIEC) to conduct the proposed election on 26th October 2024.
The 2nd defendant (KANSIEC) is hereby directed to accept as genuine and subsisting, the list of NNPP candidates submitted to it by the recognized State Chairman of the party Dalhatu Shehu Usman… That the 3rd and 4th defendants (Police and DSS) are forthwith restrained from providing security and protection to the scene of the election planned to take place on the 26th October, 2024.”
The defendants in the case include INEC, KANSIEC, Inspector General of Police, and Director of the Department of State Services (DSS).
