The court of appeal has reversed the sack of Mukhtar Umar Yarima, member representing Tarauni Federal Constituency, in the green chamber under the platform of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP.
On August 11th, the election of Mr Yarima was invalidated by the National and State House of Assembly elections petition tribunal in Kano.
The Justice I.P. Chima-led tribunal had declared Mr Yerima ineligible for presenting a forged copy of his primary school certificate to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
The tribunal had held that Yerima’s defence that he had made a change of name in 2022 did not hold water having been using three (Umar Mukhtar Zakari) names on his International passports since 2009 while his primary school certificate still bears Umar Mukhtar.
It also held that the said primary school, Hausawa Primary School, has disown the certificate tendered by the lawmaker.
However, a three-member panel of the court, in a judgement on Saturday in Abuja, upheld the arguments by counsel to Zakari and the NNPP, Mahmud Magaji (SAN), that the tribunal erred in law in reaching its decision.
In the lead judgement by Justice Obande Ogbuinya, the Court of Appeal held that the tribunal was wrong to have concluded that Zakari forged his credentials when the petitioners failed to establish their claim to that effect.
The Court of Appeal, in its judgement on Saturday, held that the respondents, who were petitioners at the tribunal, failed to prove that Zakari was not the same person who attended the school and was awarded the certificate.
It proceeded to set aside the judgement of the tribunal, allowed the appeal, and affirmed Zakari’s election.
