President Muhammadu Buhari has congratulated Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State and Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State over their victories at the Supreme Court on Monday.
The presidency, party leaders of both the ruling APC and opposition PDP have been sending congratulatory messages to the governors who yesterday (Monday) won the legal challenges to their election at the Supreme Court.
However, each has restricted the congratulatory messages to the governors in their respective parties.
Governors Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto, Simon Lalong of Plateau, Bala Mohammed of Bauchi and Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano all emerged victorious.
The presidency sent messages of congratulations to the governors of Kano and Plateau, who are both in APC with President Muhammadu Buhari.
In his message to Ganduje and Lalong, Buhari said, “I am glad this tortuous journey has ended in favour of our governors. APC won the states and has proved it in court.
It would have been a major blow if strategically important states like Kano and Plateau are lost’’.
Meanwhile, the opposition PDP has focused its own messages on the governors of Sokoto and Bauchi who are in the party. Among those who have offered good will messages are Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State and Yaukubu Dogora, former Speaker of the House of Representatives.
In one of the judgements on Monday, Justice Uwani Abba Aji of the Supreme Court, delivered the Sokoto verdict handing victory to Aminu Tambuwal of PDP. The court, in the ruling said the appeal of the APC and its candidate, Ahmad Aliyu lacked merit and subsequently dismissed it.
In the Bauchi case where Governor Bala Mohammed also of the PDP was the victor in an appeal filed by the former governor of the state, Mohammed Abubakar of the APC.
The PDP had defeated the then ruling APC in the March 24, 2019 election after an earlier election had been declared inconclusive.
Justice Mohammed Dattijo, who delivered the judgement said Abubakar, the appellant once again failed to prove his case and therefore was dismissed for lacking merit.
Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State also came out victorious in the Supreme Court verdict delivered by Justice Adamu Galinje. The court ruled that Jeremiah Useni of the PDP did not prove his case to warrant the removal of Lalong as governor.
