Some members of the Kogi Central constituency have formally submitted a petition to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) seeking the recall of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.
The move comes weeks after Akpoti-Uduaghan’s controversial suspension from the Senate on March 6 for “gross misconduct” following an altercation with Senate President Godswill Akpabio over seating arrangements. Her suspension was imposed just days after she accused Akpabio of sexual harassment, a claim that has since fueled political tensions.
Addressing journalists on Monday, Charity Omole, a representative of the petitioning constituents, stated that the recall process was necessary to ensure that the district remained represented in the Senate.
“We have come to recall her so that we can have a representative in the Senate,” Omole said. “We are here to tell INEC to please follow the constitutional process for a recall so that a recall process can begin.”
According to Omole, the petition has been received by INEC alongside all required documents. Under Nigerian law, for a recall to succeed, the petition must be signed by more than 50 percent of the registered voters in the constituency, verified by INEC, and followed by a referendum. The entire process must be concluded within 90 days from the date of submission.
Omole stated that out of the 488,000 registered voters in Kogi Central, more than 250,000 had signed the petition, meeting the constitutional threshold.
Dismissing speculation that the recall effort was politically motivated or bankrolled by external interests, she insisted that the constituents had simply lost confidence in the senator.
“We are the ones that voted her, and we don’t want her anymore because we cannot afford not to have a representative,” she said. “Nobody is bankrolling us. Nobody is having any personal issue with her. It is just what it is. The game is the game.”
Chioma Kalu
Follow us on:
