ABUJA, Nigeria – Nigeria’s Supreme Court has affirmed Caleb Mutfwang of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, as the duly elected governor of Plateau State.
This decision, delivered on Friday, January 12, 2024, comes in the wake of an appeal filed by Governor Mutfwang, seeking to overturn a ruling by the Court of Appeal in Abuja that had previously upended his electoral victory.
Justice Emmanuel Agim, delivering the judgment, stated that the governor’s appeal possessed substantial merit.
This ruling effectively sets aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal, reinstating Mutfwang’s mandate to lead Plateau State.
During the March 18, 2023, governorship poll, Mutfwang secured a decisive victory, garnering 525,299 votes, outpacing his closest contender, Nentawe Yilwatda of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who received 481,370 votes.
The initial affirmation of Mutfwang’s win by the Plateau State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal in Jos was a testament to the validity of the electoral process.
However, the subsequent reversal by the Court of Appeal in Abuja threw the governorship into contention, leading to Mutfwang’s crucial appeal to the Supreme Court.
