Politics

Natasha Faults INEC, Says Petition For Recall Should Have Been Dismissed

Published

8 months ago

March 26, 2025

Editor

The Senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has criticised the Independent National Electoral Commission for not outrightly rejecting the petition seeking her recall, describing the commission’s response as an indication of bias.

INEC, in a statement on Tuesday signed by its National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun, confirmed receiving the petition, which reportedly contains signatures from more than half of the 474,554 registered voters in the senatorial district.

However, the electoral body noted that the petition failed to include essential details such as the contact addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses of the petitioners, as required under the Commission’s Regulations and Guidelines for Recall 2024.

In response, Akpoti-Uduaghan, through her lawyer, Victor Giwa, in a letter dated March 26, accused INEC of compromising its neutrality by offering guidance to the petitioners instead of declaring the petition incompetent due to its procedural flaws.

The letter partly reads, “Your position as disclosed in your press release on March 25, 2025, signed by Sam Olumekun shows that the Commission has taken sides and has become partial in favour of the Petitioners in this case.

“The Commission has observed that the Petitioners’ Petition did not meet the threshold of the requirement of a Petition to recall a member, having not contained the required contact addresses, telephone numbers and email addresses in their covering letter forwarding the Petition as contained in Clause 1(f) of INEC Regulation and Guideline. The proper thing and step to have been taken is to declare the Petition as “incompetent” and subsequently disregard same.”

The embattled lawmaker said the proper step INEC should have taken to show it was unbiased in the matter was to declare the petition defective, which would have brought an end to the process.

She added, “Lawfully, the Commission is supposed to have declared the Petition as incompetent for being patently defective for the reasons stated above but surprisingly, the Commission, instead of disregarding the Petition for failure to meet the requirements, opted to take the role of an adviser to the Petitioners and so advised the Petitioners that once they provide the needed information that is not contained in the Petition by meeting the requirements, it shall commence the verification of the signatures in each polling units.

“We posit that the Commission has by this press release shown partisanship and partiality in favour of the Petitioner and has compromised the process.

“The proper step to take by the Commission, if the Commission will maintain its integrity and impartiality, is to declare the Petition as incompetent and defective and notify the Petitioners accordingly. Therefore, putting an end to this process at this stage.”

Akpoti-Uduaghan also pointed out that the addresses provided in the petition were limited to Okene, Kogi State, suggesting that the alleged signatures did not represent the entire senatorial district.

“Secondly, the address disclosed and provided in the petition according to your press release was Okene Kogi State, meaning that the two hundred and fifty signatories as contained in the petition came only from Okene, Kogi state, which seems more probable, ” She said.

She insisted that INEC’s decision to allow the petitioners to correct their errors rather than disqualifying the petition outright was a breach of due process, urging the commission to “do the needful and rebuild the public trust that is fast declining.
We still believe that the Commission will act rightly”.

Politics

Tinubu Sends Ex-INEC Chair, Former Oyo First Lady, 30 Additional Ambassadorial Nominees To Senate

Published

2 days ago

November 29, 2025

Editor

President Bola Tinubu has forwarded 32 additional ambassadorial nominees to the Senate for confirmation, just days after submitting an initial batch of three names.

In two separate letters to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, the President urged the upper chamber to consider and swiftly confirm 15 career diplomats and 17 non-career nominees.

The list includes four women among the career nominees and six women among the non-career nominees.

Prominent names on the non-career list include Barrister Ogbonnaya Kalu from Abia State; former presidential aide, Reno Omokri (Delta); former chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmud Yakubu; former Ekiti First Lady, Erelu Angela Adebayo; and former Enugu State Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi.

Others are former Speaker of the Katsina State House of Assembly, Tasiu Musa Maigari; former Plateau State Commissioner, Yakubu N. Gambo; and former Deputy Executive Secretary of UBEC, Yakubu K. Musa.

Also nominated are former Plateau senator, Prof. Nora Ladi Daduut; former Lagos Deputy Governor, Otunba Femi Pedro; former Aviation Minister, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode; and Barrister Nkechi Linda Ufochukwu from Anambra State.

Additional nominees include former Oyo First Lady, Fatima Florence Ajimobi; former Lagos Commissioner, Lola Akande; former Adamawa senator, Grace Bent; former Abia governor, Victor Okezie Ikpeazu; Senator Jimoh Ibrahim of Ondo State; and former envoy to the Holy See, Ambassador Paul Oga Adikwu (Benue).

The career ambassadorial nominees are Enebechi Monica Okwuchukwu (Abia), Yakubu Nyaku Danladi (Taraba), Miamuna Ibrahim Besto (Adamawa), Musa Musa Abubakar (Kebbi), Syndoph Paebi Endoni (Bayelsa), Chima Geoffrey Lioma David (Ebonyi), and Mopelola Adeola-Ibrahim (Ogun).

Others include Abimbola Samuel Reuben (Ondo), Yvonne Ehinosen Odumah (Edo), Hamza Mohammed Salau (Niger), Ambassador Shehu Barde (Katsina), Ambassador Ahmed Mohammed Monguno (Borno), Ambassador Muhammad Saidu Dahiru (Kaduna), Ambassador Olatunji Ahmed Sulu Gambari (Kwara), and Ambassador Wahab Adekola Akande (Osun).

The new nominees are expected to be deployed to countries with which Nigeria maintains strong and strategic diplomatic relations, including China, India, South Korea, Canada, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, South Africa, and Kenya, as well as to Permanent Missions such as the United Nations, UNESCO, and the African Union.

Their specific postings will be determined after Senate confirmation.

Recall that President Tinubu, last week, forwarded three ambassadorial nominees, Ambassador Ayodele Oke (Oyo), Ambassador Amin Mohammed Dalhatu (Jigawa), and retired Colonel Lateef Kayode Are (Ogun), who are being considered for postings to the UK, USA, or France.

President Tinubu said additional ambassadorial nominations will be announced in due course.

Politics

Soludo Visits Tinubu, Goes Into Closed Door Session With President

Published

4 days ago

November 28, 2025

Editor

Anambra State Governor, Prof Chukwuma Charles Soludo, on Thursday, paid a courtesy visit to the President, Bola Tinubu, GCFR at the State House.

Report by the Chief Press Secretary to Governor Soludo, Mr Chris Aburime stated that President Tinubu received the Anambra State Governor with excitement, describing him as his long standing friend of over 22 years.

Aburime said, “The President used the occasion to further congratulate Governor Soludo on his landslide victory in the just concluded Anambra gubernatorial election.

“Recall that President Tinubu had earlier issued a congratulatory message to Governor Soludo immediately the governorship election was concluded.”

Governor Soludo was declared winner with 73% of the votes cast by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.
Other details of the meeting were, however, not disclosed as the press Secretary told DAILY POST that both men went into a closed door meeting after the reception.

Politics

2027: I Will Resign If Tinubu Loses In Edo – Governor Okpebholo

Published

4 days ago

November 28, 2025

Editor

Edo State Governor Monday Okpebholor has vowed that President Bola Tinubu will win the 2027 presidential election in Edo State.

Okpebholor in an interview captured in a viral video vowed to resign if the outcome of the 2027 election does not favour the president in Edo State.

According to him, the entire people in Edo State are ready to vote for the president, citing projects that his (Okpebholor) administration executed since the All Progressives Congress, APC took over the state.

He claimed that there is no opposition in the state, stressing that everyone is supporting the ruling party ahead of the 2027 elections.

He said, “There is no opposition here in Edo everybody is for Asiwaju in this state.

“Tinubu is more popular than me in Edo state. If he doesn’t win the presidential election in Edo in 2027, I will resign.”