The Deputy President of the Senate, Jibrin Barau, administered the oath of office to Amos Yohanna, officially appointing him as the new Senator representing the Adamawa North Senatorial District. This development comes following a recent ruling by a three-member panel, chaired by Justice C. E. Nwosu-Iheme, which directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to issue a Certificate of Return to Amos Yohanna, recognizing him as the duly elected Senator. The tribunal’s prior decision affirming Abbo of the APC as the winner of the senatorial election was overturned by the appellate court.
Initially, INEC had declared Abbo the victor of the February 25 parliamentary election, a decision challenged by Yohanna at the tribunal. The tribunal had dismissed Yohanna’s case on the grounds of lacking merit. Undeterred, the PDP candidate took his case to the appellate court, where his counsel, Johnson Usman (SAN), successfully argued that his client’s case deserved careful consideration.
Following a comprehensive review of the case, the Appeal Court concurred with Usman’s assertion that, in accordance with Section 137 of the Electoral Act, 2022, the results presented clearly demonstrated non-compliance with the Electoral Act. Consequently, the court invalidated certain votes from both parties and determined that Yohanna and the PDP had won the election by a majority of lawful votes.
In response to the court’s decision, Senator Abbo expressed his dissatisfaction, characterizing it as an affront to democracy. Nevertheless, he urged his supporters to remain calm and vowed to pursue re-election in the upcoming election.