The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Gawuna

  • APC’s Gawuna accepts defeat, urges supporters to pray for Kano gov

    APC’s Gawuna accepts defeat, urges supporters to pray for Kano gov

    Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna, the All Progressives Congress (APC) gubernatorial candidate in Kano state, has gracefully embraced the Supreme Court’s verdict affirming the triumph of Abba Kabir Yusuf, the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) candidate and incumbent Governor. 

    In a sportsmanlike response to the apex court’s decision, he acknowledged it as God’s will, emphasizing his acceptance based on the belief that God’s decisions are flawless.

    Gawuna, a former deputy governor to Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, the immediate past governor of Kano and now APC national chairman, had come second in the Kano governorship election held on March 18 last year. 

    He was not satisfied with the poll outcome as declared by the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC). 

    Gawuna’s election was however validated by the concurrent judgment of the tribunal and the Court of Appeal. 

    But a five member panel of judges of the Supreme Court on Friday set aside the ruling of the lower courts and affirmed Yusuf as the lawfully elected governor of Kano.

    He said: “This judgment by the Supreme Court is God’s decision, and we accept it. As we prayed, we asked that if it was good for us, He should grant us from His bounty, and if not, He should replace it with something better. We are confident that God has answered our prayers. He is All-Wise. We are grateful to Allah, the Almighty.

    “Our supporters must understand that Allah, the Almighty, is the Designer of everything and has predestined this to occur. Everyone should remain calm and accept God’s decision. This is what all leaders should do after exhausting the court process.

    “Even before the lawsuit, I wished him well. Our prayers are always directed to Allah to make him a just leader for all, especially now that he (Yusuf) has been confirmed as the duly elected governor of the state. Every patriotic citizen should pray this.

    Read Also: Kano guber: Yusuf, Gawuna know fate as Supreme court fixes date for hearing

    “We will continue to pray for all of our leaders, from the President to the councillors, to be leaders for all. My message to the people of Kano State is to live in peace and obedience. 

    “They should stand firm on moral upbringing, which is deteriorating. People should keep praying. God is incapable of making mistakes. He is All-Knowing. We should continue to pray for peace in Kano State and Nigeria as a whole, as well as for Allah to bless us with wealth and health.

    “Everyone knows what happened. Our party, above all, took the case to court, and we followed. Following the processes, Allah, the Almighty, made a decision, which we accepted. Islamic religion is a complete way of life. 

    “We are praying to Allah for the opportunity to do the right thing, and we are confident that He will continue to assist us. Whoever knows Nasiru Yusuf Gawuna understands that Allah controls our future. He would make the decision for us.”

  • 500 private lawyers to defend Gawuna at Supreme Court

    500 private lawyers to defend Gawuna at Supreme Court

    No fewer than 500 private lawyers have volunteered to defend the Kano State governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Alhaji Nasir Gawuna, at the Supreme Court.

    A spokesperson for the lawyers, under the aegis of the Guardians of Democracy and Rule of Law, Mr. Joseph Onwudiwe, announced this at a media briefing yesterday in Abuja.

    Onwudiwe said the gesture was to enhance the country’s democracy.

    “Nigerians have observed keenly the situation unfolding in Kano State regarding the March 18 governorship election.

    “As a group saddled with the onerous responsibility of safeguarding our democratic ethos and values, we are no longer comfortable with the unwarranted attacks on the judiciary and certain moves to blackmail the court into giving backing to wanton electoral malfeasance and vote heist.

    Read Also: Cash crunch hits Akure

    “We will no longer fold our arms as lawyers and watch the judiciary being continuously harangued and the temple of justice desecrated by a group of people who failed to perfect an electoral heist,” he said.

    Onwudiwe applauded the sound reasoning that resonated in the judgments of the tribunal and the Court of Appeal.

    The lawyer said the judgments aligned with the yearnings and aspirations of the majority of Kano State voters as expressed in the valid number of votes cast in the March 18 governorship election.

    He said the group was not surprised that Governor Abba Yusuf and his agents had become insistent in selling propaganda in the name of a contradiction in the CTC of the Appeal Court judgment.

    “Nigerians will have nothing but pity for a party in a suit, finding no premise upon which to launch a successful appeal against a judgment backed by law and facts.

    “May we repeat here that the judgment of the Court of Appeal in this case was a very straightforward one which rightly dismissed the appeal of Abba Yusuf and upheld his sack by the tribunal,” Onwudiwe said.

    The lawyer noted that the courts envisaged clerical errors in judgment and embedded in their handbook and rules, enactments that empowered it to vary its judgment to reflect original intentions.

    Onwudiwe urged Nigerians not to give in to the misleading narrative being pushed by those he called Yusuf’s agents who were grasping at the clerical error on page 67 of the CTC of the Court of Appeal judgment.

    This, he said, was geared to bring the honourable justices who delivered the sound judgment to public disrepute.

    According to him, the importance of the judiciary in keeping the country’s democracy alive and thriving can never be overemphasised.

    “We are with the judiciary and we assure them of our unflinching support as they move to save Nigeria’s democracy from vote riggers and election fraudsters.

    “We must sanitise our electoral system now and build a strong democratic wall against vote inflation and other electoral malfeasance,” Onwudiwe said.

    He urged peace-loving Nigerians to rise in defence of the nation’s democracy.