In a statement released by INEC National Commissioner and Chairman of Information and Voter Education, Sam Olumekun, the commission acknowledged receiving a petition demanding the recall of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, who represents the Kogi Central Senatorial District.CONTINUE FULL READING>>>>>
However, the commission pointed out a significant problem: the petition does not contain all of the petitioners’ complete contact information. In accordance with INEC regulations, the petition must contain the full addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses of all representatives.
Rather, the petition merely gives the lead petitioner’s single phone number and the general address, “Okene, Kogi State.” According to reports, more over half of the 474,554 registered voters in the senatorial district signed the petition, which was delivered with six bags of paperwork. 902 voting places spread over 57 registration areas in the local government areas of Adavi, Ajaokuta, Ogori/Magongo, Okehi, and Okene provided these signatures. INEC underlined that voters who have lost faith in their elected official have the constitutional right to a recall procedure. The commission will use the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) to confirm the provided signatures if a petition satisfies all legal requirements.
The petition was formally submitted to INEC’s Secretary, Rose Oriaran-Anthony, on Monday. The petition’s constituents claim they have gathered the necessary number of signatures—more than 200,000 registered voters—but INEC said it is working to notify the petitioners and ensure compliance with the necessary guidelines and assured the public that the recall process would strictly follow legal procedures.
