Court of Appeal Overrules Federal High Court on Kano Electoral Body, Paving Way for LG Polls

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has nullified a previous judgment by the Federal High Court in Kano that had halted local government elections and invalidated the composition of the Kano State Independent Electoral Commission (KANSIEC).

Delivering judgment on Friday, a three-member panel of justices led by Justice Biobele Georgewill ruled that the lower court lacked the jurisdiction to adjudicate on matters concerning the constitution and qualifications of state electoral bodies. The appellate court emphasised that such issues fall squarely within the jurisdiction of state high courts, not federal ones.

The court delivered rulings in three separate appeals filed by the Kano State Attorney-General, the Kano State House of Assembly, and KANSIEC. In each case, the court sided with the appellants, effectively reinstating the legitimacy of the electoral commission and clearing the path for the long-delayed local government elections.

In a fourth and related ruling, the court also overturned another controversial decision by the same federal high court, which had rejected the list of candidates submitted to KANSIEC by the Musa Kwankwaso-led faction of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP).

The appellate court stated that disputes regarding internal party leadership and the authenticity of candidate lists from rival factions are political questions that fall outside the scope of judicial review. “Issues of party leadership and nomination of candidates are not justiciable,” the panel declared.

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The now-overturned ruling was issued on October 22, 2024, by Justice Simon Amobeda of the Federal High Court in Kano. The judgment had halted local elections across the state’s 44 local government areas, declaring that KANSIEC officials were partisan, allegedly holding membership cards of the ruling NNPP—an act deemed unconstitutional under Sections 197 and 200.

Justice Amobeda also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) not to release the national voters’ register for use in the local elections. Further, he barred security agencies, including the police and the Department of State Services (DSS), from offering any support or protection for the electoral process.