Lawal Sani Na’umba & Anor V. Abubakar Ahmed Nahuche & Ors (2008)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report

JOHN INYANG OKORO, J.C.A.

This is an appeal against the judgment: of the Governorship and Legislative Houses Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Gusau. Zamfara State in petition No.EPT/ZMS/GS/HA/24/07 delivered on 23rd August, 2007 wherein the Tribunal dismissed the Petition. The 1st appellant and 1st Respondent were candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) Respectively at the 28th April, 2007 general elections into the Bungudu west State Constituency of Zamfara State. Other political parties also sponsored candidates who contested the said election. At the end of the election, the Independent National Electoral Commission and its agents i.e 3rd – 5th Respondents, declared the 1st Respondent the, winner of the election by majority of lawful votes. Not being satisfied with the return of the 1st Respondent at the election, the, Appellants filed notice of appeal dated 3rd September, 2007 on the same date which notice contains three grounds of appeal. From the three grounds, the Appellants have distilled three issues for the determination of this appeal.

The issues are as follows:-

“(a) Whether the Tribunal was right in holding that there was no merit in the Appellants’ petition

considering the unchallenged and uncontroverted evidence led by the Appellants. This issue is distilled from ground I in the notice of appeal.

(b) Whether the Tribunal properly evaluated the documentary evidence placed before it i.e Exhibits A – M and N – GG by the Appellants before dismissing the petition of the appellants. This ground (sic) is distilled from ground 2 in the notice of appeal, and

(c) Whether, from the pleadings and the evidence led before the Tribunal, the Tribunal was justified in dismissing the petition of the Appellants.

This issue is distilled from Ground 3 in the notice of Appeal.”

The learned counsel for the, 1st and 2nd Respondent was however of the view that only two issues are necessary for the determination of this appeal. These are:-

“(a) Whether from the state of the pleadings and the entire evidences led before the Lower Tribunal, the appellants did successfully prove the case of irregularities and non – compliance with the provisions, of the Electoral Act 2006 during the conduct of the elections in issue?

(b) Whether the Lower Tribunal did properly evaluate the evidence before it in determining the petition as it did?

The 3rd and 5th respondent through their counsel also submitted two issues for the determination of this appeal. The issues are:-

“1. Whether the Appellant was able to discharge the burden of proof required to establish a case of corrupt practices or acts of non compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2006, before the Tribunal to entitle him to a judgment.”

2. Whether the failure of the 3rd – 5th Respondents to join issues with the Appellant in their reply to his Petition before the Tribunal affected the standard of proof required from the Appellant to establish or prove his case.

From these issues submitted before this court, it seems to me that only two issues are relevant for the determination of this appeal and that is, whether the appellants proved the petition before the Lower Tribunal and whether the Tribunal properly evaluated evidence led before it. I think it is very convenient to take the two issues together since they are inter-related as rightly observed by Counsel for the Respondents.