The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has received a petition seeking to recall Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, with petitioners citing loss of confidence in her leadership.
The Secretary to the commission, Rose Oriaran-Anthony, received the petition on Monday, March 24.
A group known as Concerned Kogi Youth and Women, led by Charity Ijoshe Omole, submitted the petition at INEC’s headquarters in Abuja.
“We have lost confidence in her because of her gross misconduct that led to her suspension in the Senate and left Kogi Central without representation,” Omole stated.
She further claimed that over 250,000 of the district’s 488,000 registered voters had signed in support of the recall.
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Addressed to INEC Chairman Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, the petition accuses Akpoti-Uduaghan of gross misconduct, abuse of office, and evasion of due process.
“We, the undersigned, being duly registered voters of the Kogi Central Senatorial District, hereby invoke our rights under the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to formally demand the recall of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan from the Nigerian Senate,” the document reads.
The petitioners referenced her 31st October 2023 victory at the Court of Appeal, which affirmed her as the rightful winner of the February 25, 2023, senatorial election under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
However, they argue that her actions since assuming office have “embarrassed the people of Kogi Central, tarnished the integrity of the Nigerian Senate, and undermined our nation’s democratic institutions.”
The group urged INEC to act swiftly, claiming they had secured signatures from more than half of Kogi Central’s registered voters.
“By this petition, we hereby demand that the Independent National Electoral Commission immediately commences the constitutional and procedural process of recall to remove Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan from office and declare her seat vacant,” the petition states.