Muktar Yakasai dragged his party, All Progressives Congress, APC, the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and Shaaban Sharada before the Federal High Court asking the court to order the substitution of Shaaban with his name having won the APC direct primary with over 58,000 valid votes for the party Kano Municipal House of Representatives ticket.
The party, through its counsel, opposed his application saying the electoral act gives powers to political parties to substitute candidates.
Delivering judgment, Justice Salamatu Ibrahim ruled that political parties are bound to hold primaries to nominate candidates for elections, averring that parties must stick to rules and subject themselves to judicial scrutiny.
Justice Ibrahim then ordered APC to present the plaintiff’s name to INEC and the electoral umpire should substitute Shaaban’s name when presented with Yakasai’s name.
Dissatisfied with the judgment, counsel for the President’s media aide, Nuraini Jimoh, left the court premises without speaking to media men.
A Federal High Court sitting in Kano ordered the substitution of the name of President Muhammadu Buhari’s personal assistant on electronic media, Sha’aban Sharada with Muktar Yakasai as APC candidate for Kano Municipal House of Representatives in the forthcoming elections.
APC had presented the name of Shaaban to the INEC instead of Yakasai who won the primary election held on October 3, 2018.