New Lawmaker from Kano Joins House of Reps After By-Election Win

The House of Representatives welcomed a new member, Shuaibu Rabiu, on Wednesday. He was sworn in as the lawmaker for Dawakin Kudu/Warawa Federal Constituency in Kano State after winning a recent by-election.

Speaker Abbas Tajudeen administered the oath of office to Mr Rabiu. This officially makes him part of the 10th House.

Mr Rabiu's swearing-in comes weeks after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) held a by-election to fill the vacant seat in the constituency. The seat became vacant after the former representative, Muhammad Danjuma-Hassan of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), passed away.

According to Section 76(2) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), INEC must conduct a by-election when a vacancy occurs more than three months before the House's tenure ends. This rule helps ensure that constituencies have representation.

INEC organized the by-election on June 20. Mr Rabiu, from the All Progressives Congress (APC), won the election.

The Returning Officer, Umar Sani, announced that Mr Rabiu received 35,356 votes, defeating other candidates in the race. The official results showed Lawal Garba-Haruna of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) came second with 268 votes, while Abubakar Yahaya-Muhammad of the Labour Party (LP) got 98 votes.

Mr Sani confirmed that the results came from polling units across the Dawakin Kudu/Warawa Federal Constituency.

With his inauguration, Mr Rabiu can now take part in legislative activities. This includes debates, committee work, and considering bills and motions in the House.

His swearing-in brings full representation back to the people of Dawakin Kudu and Warawa Federal Constituency. They had been without a representative since the death of Mr Danjuma-Hassan.