Following presentations by lawyers in the matter, a five-member panel of justices, headed by Justice Inyang Okoro, reserved judgment.

Governor Abba Yusuf of Kano State and the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) lodged the appeal, challenging the November 17 decision of the Court of Appeal, which nullified their victory in the March 19 governorship election.

 The appeal also highlights contradictions in the Certified True Copy (CTC) of the judgment, which upheld the governor’s election and awarded him N1 million in damages.

A three-member panel, led by Justice Moore A. Adumein, had previously upheld the appeal of Nasir Yusuf Gawuna of the All Progressives Congress (APC). The panel argued that Yusuf of the NNPP was not a registered party member and, therefore, ineligible to contest the election.

During the Thursday hearing at the apex court, the parties raised concerns about the court’s jurisdiction in political party membership issues and debated whether the court could address the consequences of INEC’s failure to sign over 160,000 ballot papers for Kano State voters.