The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has sacked the Speaker of the Bauchi State House of Assembly, Abubakar Suleiman.
Suleiman was removed as the member representing Ningi Central Constituency in Ningi Local Government Area of the State.
In the judgement it delivered on Friday, the Appeal Court ordered a rerun in 10 polling units in the constituency.
The member of the Peoples Democratic Party, won with 16, 866 votes to defeat his closest rival, Khalid Abdulmalik-Ningi of the All Progressives Congress, who scored 15, 065 votes while the candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party, Danlami Bara’u scored 4,886 votes.
But not satisfied with INEC’s declaration of the results of the election, Abdulmalik-Ningi, approached the Governorship and State Assembly Election Petition Tribunal sitting in the State to seek redress.
But the Tribunal dismissed his case and affirmed the victory of Suleiman for a second term in office.
Also not satisfied with the judgment, the APC candidate went to the Court of Appeal to challenge the tribunal’s ruling.
In its judgment on Friday, the appellate court’s three-man panel, set aside the judgment of the tribunal and ordered for a rerun.
Reacting, Abubakar Suleiman, in a statement by his spokesperson, Abdul Burra, described the judgment as a minor political setback which is not new to politics.
Although he said that the judgment was unfavourable, he, however, called on his supporters to remain calm.
The statement was entitled: ‘Court of Appeal’s ruling on Ningi Central Constituency: Bauchi Speaker calls for calm, confident of winning rerun’.
“Following the Court of Appeal ruling in Abuja today that set aside the judgment of the Election Petition Tribunal that affirmed the election of Speaker of Bauchi State House of Assembly Rt. Hon. Abubakar Y. Suleiman, as a member representing Ningi Central ordered a rerun in ten polling units, the speaker urges his supporters and all people of the constituency to remain calm.
“He said that although the judgment is unfavourable, as a Muslim he believes in all fates, thus he accepts the judgment in good faith.”
