Salisu Uli, who is contesting the African Democratic Congress (ADC) governorship ticket in Katsina State, says his camp has gone to court to challenge the nomination of former senator Ahmad Kaita, whose name appears on the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) candidate list for the 2027 election.
Mr Uli told PREMIUM TIMES on Sunday that his camp filed a motion at the Federal High Court in Abuja more than a month ago, with the next hearing scheduled for 19 October.
He said there was no need to lodge a separate complaint with INEC because the court was already hearing the matter.
“To be fair to INEC, INEC published the list in case anybody has a complaint or a petition to make,” he said. “We are already in court, so we don’t need to complain about anything for now.”
INEC’s final list of governorship candidates for Katsina State names Mr Kaita, a former senator representing Katsina North District, as the ADC candidate, with Yar’Adua Ahmed as his running mate.
Mr Uli’s name does not appear in the document.
He disputed the list’s finality, saying the courts would determine the nomination’s validity
“Some people are calling it a final list. This list cannot be final, because it’s only the courts that can decide whether a list is final or not,” he said.
Dispute over primary
Mr Uli accused the ADC of failing to hold a valid governorship primary, claiming his own camp complied with the electoral timetable.
“We participated in primary elections, you know, at the stipulated time because we did our primary election on the 20th. And they did not do any primary election,” he said.
He cited provisions of the Electoral Act and the Constitution governing party primaries and internal democracy, arguing that Mr Kaita’s nomination did not follow the required procedures.
Mr Uli said his camp was prepared to pursue the case through the appellate courts if necessary.
“If they win, we will appeal. We’ll go to the Court of Appeal. If they win at the Court of Appeal, we’ll go to the Supreme Court,” he said.
The allegations concerning the conduct of the primaries have not been independently established. The court filings and any orders relating to the suit were not available for examination.
‘I will not leave ADC’
Despite the dispute, Mr Uli ruled out defecting to another party if the courts ultimately upheld Mr Kaita’s nomination.
Asked whether he would join another party if Mr Kaita prevailed at the Supreme Court, he replied: “No, no, I will not decamp to any political party; we’ll support them.”
He confirmed that he would remain in the ADC, explaining: “Because we are in the same ADC.”
In an earlier interview with PREMIUM TIMES, Mr Uli rejected allegations that he was acting as a proxy for Katsina Governor Dikko Radda to divide the opposition.
He maintained that the state’s legitimate ADC leadership put him forward.
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Katsina governorship contest
INEC’s published list also names Governor Umaru Dikko Radda as the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate and Garba Yakubu Lado as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate.
Mr Radda is seeking a second term, while the ADC is among the parties challenging the APC’s hold on the state.
The dispute between Messrs Kaita and Uli comes amid disagreements over the ADC’s leadership and nomination processes.
Although INEC has published Mr Kaita’s name, Mr Uli says the courts will determine whether his nomination stands.
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