By Erewunmi Peace

Adamawa State Governor, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, has accused former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Senator Aisha Binani, and certain officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of allegedly plotting to undermine the 2023 Adamawa State governorship election.
Fintiri made the allegation while reflecting on the controversial circumstances surrounding the supplementary election held in April 2023.

The Adamawa governorship election drew national attention after the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Hudu Yunusa-Ari, controversially declared Binani as winner of the election while collation of results was still ongoing — a move widely criticised as unconstitutional.

INEC headquarters later nullified the declaration, describing it as “invalid, null and void,” and subsequently suspended the REC. Following the completion of the collation process, INEC declared Fintiri, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), as the duly elected governor.

In his recent remarks, Fintiri alleged that the premature declaration was part of a coordinated attempt involving political actors and compromised electoral officials to subvert the democratic process in the state.

However, there has been no official response from Atiku Abubakar or Senator Aisha Binani regarding the governor’s fresh allegations as of the time of filing this report.

The 2023 Adamawa governorship election remains one of the most debated electoral contests in Nigeria’s recent political history, raising broader concerns about electoral integrity, due process, and the role of election officials.