Hudu Yunusa-Ari, who previously oversaw elections in Nigeria’s Adamawa state, insists that Aisha ‘Binani’ Dahiru of the All Progressives Congress (APC) was the true winner of the state’s 2023 gubernatorial election.
During a press conference held in Bauchi state on Saturday, Yunusa-Ari raised the Quran while justifying his contentious choice to declare Binani as the victor, saying that he attempted several times to convey his reasoning to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) through written communication.
He also alleged that officials faced pressure to announce Ahmadu Fintiri, the candidate from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), as the winner instead.
“The dismissal is not my problem. The civil service is governed by civil service rules, procedures, and services,” he said.
He argued that he deserved to be heard, stating, “Even God will never punish anybody without sending the messages, the prophets, and the scriptures.”
“Wallahi, whatever I do, I do it within the bounds of the Quran. We have to remember the last day. I can even announce it now; she won the election against Fintiri.” Yunusa-Ari added,
This dispute originated in April 2023 when Yunusa-Ari announced Binani as the victor before the completion of vote tallies. INEC swiftly dismissed his declaration and summoned him to their office in Abuja before bringing six charges bordering on misconduct a year later.
Recently, the Senate endorsed President Bola Tinubu’s proposal to remove Yunusa-Ari and election commissioners from Abia and Sokoto states.
