“Shocking Verdict: Zamfara Governorship Election Ruled Inconclusive by Court of Appeals”

The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has declared the Zamfara State governorship election inconclusive. This decision overturns the earlier declaration by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which had named Dauda Lawal of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the winner of the election.

Bello Matawalle, the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), had contested the outcome of the March 18 election at the tribunal, but his petition was dismissed for lacking merit. However, the Court of Appeal’s judgment, delivered on Thursday, deemed the election inconclusive and directed INEC to conduct a fresh election in three local government areas.

The three-member panel of justices nullified Lawal’s victory and mandated a rerun in the Maradun, Birnin Magaji, and Bukuyun local government areas. In the judgment delivered by Justice Sybil Nwaka, the court concluded that INEC’s reliance on information from its IReV portal to collate the final result of the governorship election was erroneous.