INEC flags gaps in Natasha’s recall petition
THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has raised concerns over gaps in a petition seeking the recall of the senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.
While the electoral body acknowledged receiving the petition, which it said was accompanied by six bags of documents purportedly containing the signatures of over half of the district’s 474,554 registered voters, it stated that there was omission of contact address and phone numbers of the petitioners representatives.
In a press statement on Tuesday, March 25, INEC stated that the petitioners representatives failed to provide their verifiable contact address, telephone numbers, and email addresses, except for a number belonging to the lead petitioner.
“The Commission’s immediate observation is that the representatives of the petitioners did not provide their contact address, telephone number(s) and e-mail address(es) in the covering letter forwarding the petition through which they can be contacted as provided in Clause 1(f) of our Regulations and Guidelines.
“The address given is ‘Okene, Kogi State’, which is not a definite location for contacting the petitioners. Only the telephone number of ‘the lead petitioner’ is provided as against the numbers of all the other representatives of the petitioners,” the statement read in part.
But the commission noted that it was making efforts to use other means to notify the representatives of the petitioners of the flaws.
It explained further that if the petition met the requirements set out by law, its officials would proceed to the senatorial district to verify the alleged signatures presented by the petitioners.
It added, “The petitioners and the member whose recall is sought shall be at liberty to nominate agents to observe the verification, while interested observers and the media will also be accredited. At each polling unit, signatories to the petition shall be verified using the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS).
“Consequently, if the petitioners fully comply with the requirements of Clause 1(f) of the Regulations and Guidelines regarding the submission of their petition, the Commission will announce the next steps in line with the extant laws, regulations and guidelines.”
The INEC further assured the public that it remained committed to the legal framework of the recall.
The recall attempt has already sparked concerns among Nigerians, as they noted that the development was being driven by political actors.
Recall that the Nigerian Senate suspendedAkpoti-Uduaghan for six months over alleged violation of its rules.
The move has been criticised by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), opposition parties, and various lawyers, who argued that the suspension was hasty and unfair.
Human rights lawyer and activist, Femi Falana, condemned the suspension and described it as legislative recklessness, and demanded its immediate reversal.
On February 20 that during a plenary, Akpoti-Uduaghan caused an uproar at the Senate when she discovered that her seat had been reassigned without prior notice.
She resisted the reassignment and argued that it was an attempt to silence her.
Her refusal led to a tense confrontation with Senate President Godswill Akpabio, who ordered the sergeant at arms to order her out of the chamber.
Before her suspension, the lawmaker had accused Akpabio of making sexual advances to her severally.
According to her, her refusal to yield to the alleged proposals is the reason for her predicaments in the Senate.
The female lawmaker was at the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) on March 11, seeking international intervention over her suspension from the Senate, which she said was politically motivated.
Akpoti-Uduaghan spoke at an IPU Assembly held at the United Nations headquarters in New York, where she restated her allegation of sexual harassment by the Senate President.
Since then, she has appeared in interviews with different international media platforms, including BBC and DW to speak about her ordeals.
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