Kano High Court Judge Dies After Sudden Home Collapse

Justice Mohammed Nasir Yunusa of the Federal High Court, Kano Division, has died after collapsing in his living room on Thursday evening. He was rushed to the hospital, where medical personnel confirmed his passing.

Sources within the Federal High Court in Abuja confirmed the development on Saturday, noting that the late jurist was buried on Friday in accordance with Islamic rites. Court officials remembered him as a highly hardworking judge who successfully handled and dispensed justice in numerous high-profile cases during his lifetime.

The Director of Information for the Federal High Court of Nigeria, Catherine Oby Christopher, confirmed that Justice Yunusa passed away at the State Medical Centre in Kano. Until his death, the jurist was widely known for presiding over several notable and politically sensitive cases across the country.

Among his most high-profile matters was a major post-2023 general election suit initiated by Ibrahim Haruna-Ibrahim regarding the validity of Labour Party candidacies. The legal action sought to revoke and set aside the certificates of return issued to winning Labour Party candidates nationwide, including the then Abia State governor-elect, Alex Otti.

The respondents in the suit were the Labour Party and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)

While the court had nullified the election of Labour Party candidates in Kano State, Justice Yunusa clarified that candidates who participated in the elections in Abia State were not parties to the suit before his court.

“This court lacks jurisdiction to make an order for the issuance of certificate of return. They are at liberty to seek redress in the appropriate Division of the court,” the judge had ruled at the time.

Colleagues and associates described the late judge as diligent and committed to the dispensation of justice.