The National and State House of Assembly Election Petition Tribunal in Kano State made a significant ruling on Monday, resulting in the removal of Idris Dankawu, the incumbent lawmaker representing the Kumbotso Federal Constituency.
The tribunal’s decision was based on the confirmation that Dankawu, who ran as a candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), had engaged in the forgery of his West African School Certificate, a document he had submitted during his election campaign.
Munir Danagudi, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), had filed a petition against Dankawu, alleging that the NNPP candidate had forged his Secondary School Certificate in order to gain admission to Nuhu Bamalli Polytechnic in Kaduna.
In a ruling delivered by Justice I.P Chima, it was determined that Idris Dankawu, representing NNPP, had indeed forged his WAEC certificate. Consequently, the election in which he emerged as the victor was nullified.
The tribunal issued a directive to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to withdraw the Certificate of Return that had been previously presented to Dankawu and declared Munir Danagudi as the legitimate winner of the Kumbotso Federal Constituency election, which had taken place on February 25, 2023.
Justice Chima’s verdict was clear: “Having satisfied with the provision of the law, we hereby declare and return Munir Babba Danagudi as the winner of the Kumbotso Federal House Representatives election. All parties to bear own cost.” This decision marked a significant development in the ongoing legal battle surrounding the election results in the Kumbotso Federal Constituency.