2023: APC, 3 other parties challenge Governor Bala’s victory at Tribunal

From Ahmad Muhammad, Bauchi

Four different political parties out of the 14 that contested the 2023 gubernatorial election in Bauchi State have filed a petition before the election Petition Tribunal sitting in Bauchi challenging the declaration of Governor of Bauchi State, Senator Bala Abdulkadir Muhammad.
The petitioners includes Governorship Candidate of the All Progressive Congress, APC, Air Marshal Sadique Baba Abubakar, Allied Peoples Movement, APM, Peoples Redemption Party, PRP and New Nigeria Peoples Party NNPP.
They separately took the Governor of Bauchi State,Senator Bala Abdulkadir Muhammad , to the election tribunal for emerging winner of the 2023 gubernatorial election in the state.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Senator. Bala Mohammed as the winner of the 18th March governorship election in Bauchi.
Bala scored 525,280 votes to clinch the seat and defeated his closest contender, APC’s retired Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, who came second with 432,272 votes while Senator Halliru Jika of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) came third with 60,496 votes.
The petitioner’s respondents include INEC, Bala Mohammed, and his party, the Peoples Democratic Party PDP.
The petitioners alleged that elections were not conducted in substantial compliance with a mandatory requirement of the Electoral Act, 2022 and guidelines as required as some were marred by irregularities.