Plateau residents react to sack of Gov. Mutfwang

By Peter Amine

Some residents of Jos on Sunday demanded a review of all the judgements delivered by the court of appeal on the cases filed against the outcome of the 2023 general elections in Plateau State.

The aggrieved residents spoke while protesting against the judgment of Court of Appeal that sacked Governor Caleb Mutfwang

The appellate court set aside the judgement of the governorship election tribunal that upheld the election of Mutfwang as governor of the state.

It declared Dr Nentawe Yilwatda of the All Progressives Congress (APC) winner of the governorship election and ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to issue a fresh certificate of return to him.

But the residents described the judgement on the governorship polls and other judgments of the appeal court on Plateau elections as a clear ”injustice”

Mr Philemon Jangkam, the youth leader of Angwan Rukuba Junction, called on the National Judicial Council (NJC) to review the all the judgments on Plateau elections.

“We started noticing the injustice from the court of appeal judgments that sacked Rep. Isaac Kwallu, Sen. Simon Mwadkon, Rep Dachung Bagos and others lawmakers.

“We the youth of this community are not happy and we will not accept this judgments.

“We will continue to protest untill this judgment and the ones that sacked our national assembly members are reviewed,” he said.

On his part, Samson Iliya, described the judgment as a deliberate subversion of the people’s will, adding that the peaceful protest was to express their alright displeasure with the judiciary.

#”We are out here to express our displeasure over the appeal court judgments on Plateau elections.

”We call on the NJC to review all the judgments to redeem the sinking image of the judiciary.

”We massively voted for the governor and the sacked lawmakers; they are the choices of the majority of Plateau people and we will not allow the judiciary to decide who should lead us,” he said.

Mr Pankyes Yanksat, another youth from Gyero Junction, advised Mutfwang to immediately challenge the judgement at the Supreme Court.

Yanksat,who expressed optimism that Mutfwang’s mandate would be restored, called on the judges of the apex court to keep emotions aside and go by the merits of the matter.

The protesters were later dispersed by security personnel.

(NAN)