The African Democratic Congress (ADC) Appeal Committee in Kaduna State has confirmed Shuaibu Idris Mikati as the party’s governorship candidate after reviewing complaints from aspirants who contested the recent primary election.
The chairman of the committee, Dr Muhammed Mustapha Fagge, said the panel carefully examined petitions, documents and submissions before reaching its decisions.
According to Fagge, the committee unanimously upheld Mikati’s victory after finding that he received the highest number of valid votes.
The panel also said evidence presented during its review pointed to irregularities and alleged fraudulent activities involving some rival governorship aspirants, reinforcing its decision.
The committee equally affirmed the victories of Tukur Salisu Kakeyi in the Zaria Federal Constituency primary and Muhammed Mahmoud Aliyu in the Soba Federal Constituency contest after confirming that both candidates secured the highest number of valid votes.
However, several other primaries were declared inconclusive due to irregularities, procedural violations, the omission of candidates from ballot papers, and a lack of sufficient evidence that voting took place.
In the Ikara/Kubau Federal Constituency, the committee ordered a rerun after discovering that Ibrahim Danlami Kubau, a cleared aspirant, had been omitted from the ballot.
A fresh primary was also ordered in Kaduna South Federal Constituency after investigators found no credible evidence that elections had been conducted across all wards.
The committee directed rerun elections in several constituencies and wards, including Kaura, Soba, Ikara, Kajuru, Badarawa/Malali, Magajin Gari II, Birnin Gwari, Tudun Wada West, Igabi, Kagarko, Kawo, Zaria, Chikun/Kajuru and Kudan/Makarfi.
In another key ruling, the committee said any attempt to adopt a consensus or affirmation process for the Kaduna North Senatorial District primary would be invalid unless all parties involved agreed to it.
Fagge said the committee was guided by fairness, transparency, inclusiveness and internal democracy.
“Our decisions were reached strictly on the basis of facts, evidence, and the provisions of the party’s guidelines,” he said.
He added that the committee remained committed to protecting the integrity of the party’s internal electoral process and ensuring that the wishes of members are respected.