The governor stated in a statement issued through his Director of Press and Public Affairs, Gyang Bere, that the “temporary setback” will not deter him from placing the state on the path of unity, peace, and growth.
The governor urged state residents and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) followers to be calm, assuring them that as long as God reigns, his mandate will be kept and secured. According to the governor, he has asked his legal team to submit an appeal with the Supreme Court.
“He expressed strong optimism that the mandate overwhelmingly given to him by the people of Plateau State would be restored, as he has instructed his legal team to file an appeal at the Supreme Court,” the statement was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state have beaten the drums in celebration of the appellate court’s decision to dismiss Mutfwang.
On Sunday, party supporters gathered along the Tudun Wada Ring Road in the state’s Jos North Local Government Area to celebrate with musical instruments blasting danceable tunes.
Mutfwang was fired by an Abuja Appeal Court on Sunday.
The lead Justice, Elfrieda Williams-Dawodu, directed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to provide a Certificate of Return to the APC candidate, Nentawe Goshwe, in her verdict on Sunday.
Justice Williams-Dawodu overturned the Tribunal’s decision to uphold Governor Mutfwang’s election, calling it “highly incompetent.”
The tribunal’s decision to dismiss the petition filed by the APC and its candidate on the grounds that the duo had no business meddling in the affairs of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on whose platform Mutfwang was elected is a violation of Section 177 of the 1999 Constitution as amended and Section 134 (C) of the Electoral Act, according to the court.