The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has confirmed that the contact details of the petitioners’ representatives involved in the recall process of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan from Kogi Central are now available. This announcement was made by Sam Olumekun, the National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, in a statement released on Wednesday.
According to the statement, a letter containing the telephone numbers, email addresses, and other contact information of the petitioners’ representatives was submitted to INEC’s Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu. This update follows an earlier notice from INEC indicating that the petitioners had initially failed to provide the required contact information under the Commission’s Regulations and Guidelines for Recall 2024.
The statement further noted that INEC has formally notified Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan about the receipt of the recall petition. This notification was delivered to her official address and has also been shared with the presiding officer of the Senate, as well as published on INEC’s website for public access.
“The commission hereby confirms that the contact address of representatives of the petitioners, their telephone numbers, and e-mail addresses have now been provided in a letter addressed to the chairman of the commission dated today,” Olumekun stated.
The next phase of the recall process will involve a thorough examination of the list of signatories provided by the petitioners to ensure that it is endorsed by more than 50 percent of registered voters in the Kogi Central Constituency. The outcome of this verification will be made public in the coming days, determining the subsequent steps in the recall procedure.
INEC has reiterated its commitment to transparency throughout the process, stating, “The next step is to scrutinize the list of signatories submitted by the petitioners to ascertain that the petition is signed by more than half (over 50 percent) of the registered voters in the Constituency.”
This recall petition follows several controversies involving Akpoti-Uduaghan, who was suspended from the Senate on March 6 for alleged “gross misconduct” after a dispute with Senate President Godswill Akpabio. The petition, titled “Constituents’ Petition for the Recall of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan on Grounds of Loss of Confidence,” calls for her removal due to accusations of misconduct, abuse of office, and deceit.
