Politics
Adamawa Gov’ship Tussle: Supreme Court Reserves Judgment On Binani’s Appeal
The Supreme Court, on Monday, reserved judgment on an appeal the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate, Senator Aisha Dahiru, popularly known as Binani, filed to challenge the outcome of the governorship election that held in Adamawa State on March 18, 2023.
A five-member panel of the apex court, led by Justice Inyang Okoro, adjourned the matter for judgment, after all the parties adopted their final briefs of argument.
Specifically, the appellants, through their legal team headed by Chief Akinolu Olujimi (SAN), prayed the court to sack Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State from office.
They urged the Supreme Court to set aside the concurrent verdicts of the Court of Appeal and the Adamawa State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal, which upheld Fintiri’s re-election.
Binani maintained that she polled the majority of valid votes cast at the election and was validly declared the winner by the state’s Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC.
However, Fintiri, through his lawyer, Mr. Damian Dodo (SAN), urged the apex court to dismiss the appeal and validate his election victory.
The appellate court had, in a judgment it delivered on December 18, 2023, dismissed Senator Dahiru’s appeal, even as it awarded a cost of N1 million against her.
While affirming the election of Governor Fintiri, who was the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the appellate court held that Senator Dahiru’s appeal was vague.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had at the end of a supplementary election held in Adamawa State, announced that Fintiri polled 430,861 votes to defeat Binani of the APC who got a total of 398,788 votes.
Dissatisfied with the outcome of the poll, Binani approached the tribunal. She alleged that the election was fraught with corrupt practices and manifest non-compliance with provisions of the Electoral Act 2022.
She urged the Justice Theodora Obi Uloho-led tribunal to declare that she was the valid winner of the governorship election. The panel refused and dismissed her petition.
While affirming the decision of the tribunal, the appellate court, in its lead verdict that was read by Justice Ebiowei Tobi, held that the 27 grounds of appeal the APC candidate brought before it, lacked competence.
It held that the appellants failed to, by way of credible evidence, substantiate the allegations they raised against the outcome of the election. It stressed that their claim that electoral fraud took place in 14,104 polling units in the state was not proven.
More so, the court noted that the record of proceedings transmitted from the tribunal, as well as the briefs of argument that were filed by the appellants, were incomplete.
The appellate court further emphasised that only a Returning Officer at an election has the statutory power to declare the results of the election.
It will be recalled that the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja had earlier granted INEC the permission to prosecute its suspended Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Adamawa State, Hudu Yunusa-Ari.
Yunusa-Ari is facing a six-count charge over alleged unlawful role he played in the Adamawa State governorship election held on March 18.
INEC had initially declared that the gubernatorial election was inconclusive and ordered a supplementary poll.
However, midway into the collation of results of the supplementary poll held on April 15, the suspended Adamawa REC, Yunusa-Ari, sidelined protocols and announced the APC candidate, Binani, as the winner.
The action elicited instant reactions. The electoral body not only voided Yunusa-Ari’s action but equally placed him on an indefinite suspension.
The Commission disclosed the figure in its weekly update for week 14 of the second phase of the exercise, which ended on Friday, April 17, 2026.
According to the breakdown, 2,259,288 Nigerians completed their registration through the online pre-registration portal, while 1,489,416 finalized their registration physically at designated centres nationwide.
INEC noted that the figures remain preliminary and are subject to further verification and data cleaning processes to ensure accuracy ahead of the consolidation of the national voter register.
With the conclusion of the registration phase, the Commission has now shifted focus to the display of the Register of Voters for Claims and Objections, a statutory stage aimed at strengthening the credibility and integrity of the voters register.
The display exercise is scheduled to hold from April 29 to May 5, 2026, across designated centres nationwide, providing citizens the opportunity to verify their details and raise objections where necessary.
The Commission urged all registered voters from the concluded phase to take advantage of the exercise to confirm the accuracy of their information and assist in identifying ineligible entries, including duplicate registrations, deceased persons, and non-citizens.
INEC explained that the Continuous Voter Registration exercise is being conducted in phases, with the first phase running from August 18 to December 10, 2025, while the second phase commenced on January 5, 2026 and ended on April 17, 2026.
The Commission further stated that the date for the commencement of the third phase will be announced in due course.
Reaffirming its commitment to credible elections, INEC stressed that maintaining a clean and accurate voter register remains central to ensuring free, fair, and transparent electoral processes in Nigeria.
The Executive Director of IPC, Mr Lanre Arogundade, informed the journalists that the dialogue was sponsored by the European Union, under the auspices of the EU-Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN II), Component 4: Support to Media.
According to the veteran media practitioner, the programme is aimed at strengthening the capacity of the media to promote credible elections through factual, accurate and fair reporting.
He explained that the programme is part of a broader five-year intervention designed to support democratic governance and improve the role of the media in Nigeria’s electoral process, stressing that fact-checking and inclusive reporting are critical responsibilities for journalists, especially during electioneering.
He described the media as a central role agent with regard to upholding transparency and accountability in the democratic process.
A resource person and Director of Journalism Clinic, Lagos, Mr Taiwo Obe, enjoined journalists to embrace the evolving technology so that they would not be in the backwaters in the practice of the profession.
He advised journalists not to downplay Artificial Intelligence (AI) in their bid to remain relevant in the media environment by being abreast of the changing patterns of news consumption.
The journalism teacher explained that with digital transformation of the media industry, it had become imperative for journalists to constantly upgrade and update their skills, stressing the fundamental place of attitude and self-development and underscored the dynamic nature of media consumption in the digital age, thereby compelling journalists to embrace tools and platforms, but without much reliance on AI.
In his lecture, a Professor of Mass Communication at the Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE), Adebola Aderibigbe, advised journalists in Ekiti State to ensure that coverage of the upcoming governorship poll is issue-based rather than dwelling on personalities.
He added that sensationalism should not occupy the front-burner of any discussions concerning the 2026 election, admonishing that sustenance of democracy is anchored on responsible journalism.
”Journalists must prioritise accuracy, fairness and balance in their reports by verifying facts and giving all parties involved in political matters the opportunity to present their views”, he said.
According to the university don, the election will not be defined by personalities, but by issues. ”Let issues be the pivotal ring upon which every discussion should be made. Sensationalisation of issues should not be the bedrock of discussions in the 2026 election”, he added.
“Do not hear from Party A without hearing from Party B, otherwise the report will be skewed to one side and once issues of elections are skewed, problems will naturally arise”, he stressed.