The stifling tension in Plateau State, especially its capital, Jos, appears eased as the Plateau State Gubernatorial Election Tribunal has adjudged Governor Caleb Mutfwang as the duly elected governor of the state.
Plateau has been racked by violence believed to be orchestrated by foreign Fulani militia, according to indigenes.
Hundreds have died, with the momentum of killings escalating in the local government area of Mangu, where Mutfwang hails from. The renewed killings there has led to suspicions that political foes of the governor were behind it.
But Friday, celebrations broke out as soon as news filtered out that the petition against the governor and his election was thrown out.
Recall that the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its governorship candidate, Nentawe Yitwatda, approached the tribunal challenging the victory of Governor Caleb Mutfwang of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the aforementioned polls.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Mutfwang winner of the poll after polling 525, 299 votes to defeat his closest rival, Yiltwatda, who polled 481, 370 votes.
Earlier, the governorship tribunal had dismissed a petition filed by the governorship candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Alfred Dabwan, who sought the nullification of the poll over the alleged exclusion of the party’s logo on the ballot paper of the March 18 polls.