The Court of Appeal has nullified a ruling by the Federal High Court in Kano which had earlier invalidated the Kano State Independent Electoral Commission (KASIEC) and the October 26, 2024, local government election.
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Delivering a collective judgment on Friday, a three-member panel led by Justice Biobele Abraham Georgewill ruled that the lower court lacked jurisdiction to entertain the matter, stating that issues concerning the composition of state electoral bodies and the qualifications of their members fall outside the purview of the Federal High Court
The appeal court allowed the three separate appeals filed by the Kano State Attorney General, the Kano State House of Assembly, and KASIEC, respectively, and struck out the original suits on the grounds that they were filed in the wrong court. According to the ruling, the appropriate forum for such disputes is the Kano State High Court.
The appellate court also reversed another Federal High Court judgment which had dismissed the list of candidates submitted by the Musa Kwakwanso-led faction of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) to KASIEC ahead of the same election.
The Court of Appeal held that questions relating to party leadership and candidate nomination are internal matters of political parties and not justiciable issues for the court to determine, thereby reinforcing the commission’s recognition of the submitted list.
