The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced that the petition seeking to recall Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central Senatorial District, has failed to meet the constitutional threshold required for such action.
In an official statement posted on its X (formerly Twitter) handle on Thursday, INEC stated: “The petition for the recall of the Senator representing the Kogi Central Senatorial District has not met the requirement of **Section 69(a) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).” This section mandates that a recall petition must be signed by more than half of the registered voters in the affected constituency.
The development follows a heated controversy between the senator and the electoral body. Speaking during her homecoming rally in Okehi Local Government Area, which was initially resisted by local authorities, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan accused INEC of bias and complicity, alleging that the commission was aiding petitioners to manipulate the recall process.
“What I see INEC doing is aiding and guiding petitioners on how to perfect their illicit acts,” she told supporters, arriving defiantly by helicopter amid a celebratory crowd.
With INEC’s declaration, the recall effort appears stalled, although political tensions in Kogi Central remain high. The senator, a vocal advocate for transparency and development in the region, has vowed to continue serving her constituents undeterred.
“The first time the petition was submitted, they didn’t have an address and phone numbers, so INEC went out to guide them on how to submit information that will perfect their petition.
“And what did they do? The petitioners, who were from the other party, the APC, submitted a letterhead. What was the name of it? Kogi Central Political Frontier. And the address there was number 4, Oboroke.”
She said the address does not exist, disclosing that she ran a check on the status of registration of Kogi Central Political Frontier, the association which sponsored her recall.
“And the CAC report came back negative, that the association is not registered. So, I’m still waiting and wondering why INEC has not yet made a statement to that effect or sent people down to Oboroke here, which is just five minutes away, to ascertain whether that address is real.
“Or have we stooped to the point whereby fictitious, non-existing associations and individuals can call for the recall of a senator? Are we in a kangaroo country? We should not allow that.