By Milcah Tanimu
The Department of State Services (DSS) has refuted allegations that its operatives arrested one of the judges who presided over the 2023 Kano State gubernatorial election tribunal.
The accusations stemmed from a statement made by Sanusi Bature, the Chief Press Secretary of the Kano State Governor, who claimed that the Kano State government suspected that the judges involved in the judgment of the Kano State Gubernatorial Election Petition Tribunal were intimidated and detained by security agencies.
The tribunal recently nullified Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf’s victory and declared the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Nasiru Gawuna, as the winner of the March 18 governorship election.
Dr. Peter Afunanya, the spokesperson for the DSS, responded to these allegations, dismissing them as baseless. He stated, “This is a very ridiculous statement. Arresting judges for what reason? It is not true, please.”
In an interview on Channels Television, Sanusi Bature expressed his concerns about the situation. He questioned why the DSS would arrest a judge without any suspicion and suggested that this might be an act of intimidation.
Bature also raised doubts about the authenticity of the virtual judgment, raising questions about where it was delivered and whether the judges were under duress. He pointed out that the declared winner, Nasiru Gawuna, had initially accepted defeat and congratulated Abba Kabir, stating that he would not go to court.
The situation remains a matter of dispute, with the Kano State government alleging intimidation of the judges, while the DSS denies any such actions.
