PDP Petition INEC over Certificate of Return in Gwaram Inconclusive Election

From Mika’il Tsoho, Dutse

The People Democratic Party (PDP) Gwaram local government chapter, called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to withdraw the certificate of returns and maintain it’s earlier decision that the Gwaram state Assembly constituency election is inconclusive.

This was contained in a petition issue and sent to the national chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC, professor Mahmud Yakubu and made the copy available to news men in Dutse.

The petition which jointly signed by the Gwaram local government PDP branch chairman and the state Assembly candidate, Mr Zakari Muhammad Inuwa which says the Gwaram state Assembly constituency election returning officer has declared the election as inconclusive following the cancellations of election in 12 poling units of the area.

According to the petition “you may wish to recall that your commission organized and conducted on the 18th of March 2023 in which political parties PDP inclusive participated, after the collation the returning officer of the commission in Gwaram local government declared that the results of the election is inconclusive due to an over voting and other election malpractices that led the cancellations of 12 polling units”.

Mr Zakari Muhammad Inuwa maintained that “unfortunately after the declaration election results inconclusive, some thugs later mobilized and force the returning officer to declare the APC candidate as winners under duress which contravenes and violated the 2023 electoral law.

“Given the above negative development, I the candidates of PDP had wrote a letter on 20th March to the JIgawa state Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) drowned his attention on such negative development”.

“Despite that the JIgawa Residents Electoral Commission (REC) go ahead and issued a certificate of returns to APC candidate. This is unfortunate and could be injurious to democracy and democratic value”

The petitioner therefore called on the INEC chairman to suspend the issued of the certificate of returns to APC candidate and organize reruns election in the constituency.

While reacting to the complain, the Jigawa Resident Electoral Commissioner professor Lawal Bashar said, he didn’t receive any petition up to the seven days ultimatum as provided by law.

” The returning officer from Gwaram together with Bursar Federal University Dutse presented the results here at INEC collation centre in Dutse without any complain before the PDP and all other political parties agents”, he said.