The Supreme Court has fixed January 20 to deliver judgment on an appeal from the governorship election in Kano State.

A seven-man panel of justices of the apex court led by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Tanko Muhammad, fixed the date on Tuesday in Abuja at the hearing of the appeal filed by the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the March 9 poll, Mr Abba Yusuf.

The court fixed Monday next week to decide the fate of the appeal after listening to arguments by the counsels representing the appellant and the respondents in the suit.

The governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kano State, Mr Abba Yusuf, had earlier challenged the re-election of Governor Abdullahi Ganduje in the March 9 poll.

Mr Yusuf filed an appeal at the Supreme Court following the governor’s victory at the Kano State Governorship Election Tribunal and the Court of Appeal.

He was represented at the apex court by a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Adegboyega Awomolo while Governor Ganduje and his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), as well as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were listed as respondents in the appeal.

Adegboyega predicated his argument on the ground that the Returning Officer for the governorship election in Kano State unilaterally cancelled the results from 207 polling units.

He described the action of the electoral officer as ultra vires, null and void.

The counsel representing INEC, Mr Ahmed Raji, however, countered the claims of the PDP candidate’s lawyer.