Since the return of democratic governance in 1999, one lawmaker who has been consistently elected to the House of Representatives is Alhassan Ado Doguwa. The February 25, 2023 elections would have offered the Kano state lawmaker an unbroken seven terms. JOSHUA EGBODO writes on the intrigues threatening his latest return
How it began
All was seemingly going well in the aftermath of the presidential and National Assembly elections held across the country on February 25, with results gradually trickling in from all nooks and crany. Initial reports had put incumbent Majority Leader of the House of Representatives, Alhassan Ado Doguwa as one of the members who have won their reelection bids.
But while jubilations were yet rife, reports filtered in that the lawmaker representing the Tudun Wada/Doguwa Federal Constituency of Kano state was arrested at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, on his way to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the lesser Hajj.
Police explains arrest rationale
While many were yet sceptical on veracity of the arrest story, the police in Kano confirmed it. The Kano state Commissioner of Police, Muhammad Yakubu, was to disclose that his command arrested Alhassan Ado Doguwa for alleged complicity in electoral violence recorded in Tudun Wada local government area of the state, during the presidential and National Assembly elections.
A statement by the Command’s spokesperson, SP Abdullahi Haruna, said Doguwa was invited by the command but failed to honour the invitation, hence his arrest at the airport.
“Following complaints received on the gruesome murder of three persons, causing grievous injury to eight others in Tudun Wada LGA on 26/02/2023 while the collation of election results was ongoing and an alleged viral video of some victims with suspected gunshots in the Social Media, the Commissioner of Police in charge of 2023 general election, Kano State Command, CP Muhammad Yakubu, directed the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Kano State Police Command to carry out a thorough investigation.
“In continuation of the investigation, on 27th February 2023, the Department extended a formal invitation to Honorable Alhassan Ado Garba Doguwa, a member representing Doguwa/Tudun Wada Federal Constituency for his alleged complicity in the incident.
“Sequel to his refusal to honour the invitation, the Command was left with no other option than to activate a motion that would lead to his arrest. He was subsequently arrested by detectives from the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) Bompai Kano at Malam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA), Kano.
“Investigation is ongoing, the suspects arrested will soon be charged to court for prosecution, and the effort to get others at large is being intensified”, the statement in part, explained why he was picked by the police
Doguwa in court
True to its resolve that those arrested in connection with the violence will be charged to court soon after its investigation is concluded, the police arraigned the lawmaker before a Senior Magistrate Court in Kano on charges bothering on alleged murder (culpable homicide), public disturbance and other infractions. Doguwa was subsequently remanded in custody by the magistrate court.
A Federal High Court in Kano was however to on March 6, grant bail to the House of Representatives Majority Leader, following an exparte application for the enforcement of his rights by his lawyer, Barrister Nuraini Jimoh, who urged the court to release the accused on bail. The presiding judge, Justice Yunusa Muhammad, granted the application with N500 million bond, and other conditions which legal pundits felt were very stringent.
INEC deletes name from members-elect list
As preparations were in top gear for the issuance of certificates of return to elected members of the coming 10th assembly of Nigeria’s apex legislature by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), checks confirmed that Doguwa’s name was conspicuously missing amongst the Kano State’s contingents. At the moment the report was in the public domain, it was not clear whether the decision was in connection with the verdict of the Federal High Court in Kano.
The electoral umpire had declared Doguwa who ran on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), winner of the House of Representative seat for Doguwa/Tudun Wada after the polls on February 25. He got 39,732 votes to defeat his closest opponent and candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Yushau Salisu Abdullahi, who polled 34,798 votes, but less than 24 hours to INEC’s commencement of issuance of the certificates, Doguwa’s name was missing from the list of elected members of the House of Representatives.
The electoral umpire was later credited with an explanation that Doguwa’s declaration as the winner was made under duress.
State government denies truncating moves
Feelers were that the Kano state government, under Governor Abdulahi Ganduje may be working to get the lawmaker out of the travails, including to truncate the court case against him. However, the government came out to say it had no plans to do so. The Kano state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Musa Abdullahi Lawan, denied the alleged plan, describing same as “baseless and unfounded”.
Lawan who confirmed that his ministry was in receipt of the case diary from the police, said “We have studied the case diary very well and you know, we don’t need to rush, considering the nature of the charges against the defendant, this is capital offence, for us to give legal advice and prepare a charge, we need to study it very well.
“We have perused the case diary and I already instructed the case file be transmitted to the police yesterday, (last Thursday), with our observations and legal advice, so that we can properly charge and arraign the defendant at the state high court with offences he’s alleged to have committed”, he said.
He denied the insinuations going round that he, in his capacity as the attorney-general, would file nolle presequi in favour of the defendant, describing the rumour as “mere politics”, adding that the case was investigated by the police “at a very short time and brought to the ministry for legal advice”. He insisted that “We need more information and we have informed the police, there are certain things we do not have to say in the media, because it may jeopardise our case”.
Ordered supplementary poll
It is no longer news, that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) last Wednesday announced that it will conduct a supplementary election in Tudun Wada/Doguwa federal constituency of Kano State, following its review of the exercise that saw the initial emergence of Doguwa
The Commission had cancelled the election held in the constituency saying Doguwa was declared the winner by the returning officer, Ibrahim Yakassai, under duress, faulting the lawmaker’s victory days after he was arrested, charged and arraigned in court. Announcing the reviewed results, INEC stated that the results show that Doguwa’s APC got 39,732, while his main challenger of the NNPP got 34, 798, and the PDP candidate scored 7,091.
It said results from 13 polling units were cancelled, and that it will conduct supplementary elections in the affected units to determine the winner of the election, for which no date has been fixed.
A dangling fate?
To followers of the issues surrounding the lawmaker, it has been a trouble with multiple faces. Doguwa is standing trial over alleged criminal conspiracy, culpable homicide, unlawful possession of a firearm, mischief, and public disturbance. He was arrested on February 28, for his alleged involvement in the killing of several persons and burning of the Secretariat of the NNPP, was on Wednesday remanded in prison custody by a chief magistrate court in Kano, and got a bail last Monday.
Will he eventually win, after the expected supplementary poll? If he does, what will happen if he gets convicted in the case against him? Culpable homicide alone is punishable with death. If he escapes that, what if he is convicted of the other charges, all of which are criminal in nature? The Indisputable inference would be that a conviction will earn him a straight disqualification from holding a public office, in this case, membership of the House of Representatives.
He has been tipped to be one of those angling for speakership of the 10th House of Representatives based on his cognate experience, though in the opinion of many;subject to the zoning arrangement of the ruling APC to which he belonged.
Legal pundits say his team of lawyers have a lot before it at the moment, as the public perception on the matter has been that it is now a case of a renowned lawmaker’s fate hanging on an unpredictable scale.