In the bustling council wards of Gwagwalada, anticipation hung heavy as residents awaited the outcome of a fiercely contested chairmanship election. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had gone head-to-head with the All Progressives Congress (APC), each determined to secure control of the area council.
By the early hours of Sunday, the suspense finally broke. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Mohammed Kasim of the PDP victorious, after he amassed 22,165 votes. His closest rival, Yahaya Usman of the APC, trailed with 17,788 votes, while Biko Umar of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) finished a distant third with 1,687 votes.
Standing before the crowd, Returning Officer Prof. Philip Akpeni made the official pronouncement: Kasim had met all legal requirements and was “hereby declared the winner and returned elected.”
The election, held on February 21, 2026, spanned all ten wards of the council Paiko, Dobi, Gwako, Ibwa, Staff Quarters, Zuba, Ikwa, Kutunku, Gwagwalada Centre, and Tunga Maje. For many residents, the announcement marked not just the end of a tense contest, but the beginning of a new chapter in local governance.
