Senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has criticized the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for failing to dismiss a petition seeking her recall, alleging that the commission’s handling of the matter reflects bias.
INEC, in a statement on Tuesday signed by its National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun, confirmed receiving the petition, which reportedly contains signatures from over half of the 474,554 registered voters in the senatorial district. However, the electoral body pointed out that the petition lacked crucial details such as contact addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses of the petitioners, as required by the Commission’s 2024 Regulations and Guidelines for Recall.
Reacting through her lawyer, Victor Giwa, in a letter dated March 26, Akpoti-Uduaghan accused INEC of abandoning its neutral stance by advising the petitioners on how to correct the errors instead of outrightly dismissing the petition for non-compliance.
She argued that INEC’s refusal to declare the petition “incompetent” despite its procedural shortcomings indicates partiality. The letter read in part:
“Your position, as disclosed in your press release of March 25, 2025, signed by Sam Olumekun, shows that the Commission has taken sides in favor of the petitioners. The petition does not meet the threshold for a valid recall process, yet instead of disregarding it, the Commission chose to guide the petitioners on how to rectify their errors.”
The senator maintained that if INEC were acting impartially, it would have declared the petition defective, effectively terminating the recall process. Instead, she claimed, the commission’s statement encouraged the petitioners to provide the missing details, suggesting that INEC was not upholding due process.
Additionally, Akpoti-Uduaghan questioned the legitimacy of the petition, noting that the addresses listed were only from Okene, Kogi State, rather than across the entire senatorial district. This, she argued, casts doubt on the claim that the signatures represent the majority of registered voters in Kogi Central.
She further urged INEC to uphold its integrity and restore public trust by dismissing the petition outright, warning that its current approach compromises the credibility of the electoral process.
