March 25, 2025 – A political firestorm is brewing in Nigeria’s Kogi State as a controversial recall petition targeting Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, the first elected female senator from the state, has sparked widespread debate and allegations of fraud. The petition, submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on March 24, 2025, claims to have garnered over 250,000 signatures from constituents in Kogi Central Senatorial District—a figure that has raised eyebrows given the district’s voting history. The woman behind the petition, identified in a viral X post by user @magnificdude, is allegedly a close ally of former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello, who is currently wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for charges related to N80.2 billion in money laundering. This development has fueled speculation of a coordinated political attack against Senator Natasha, who has been at the center of multiple controversies in recent months.
The recall petition, submitted by a group called “Concerned Kogi Youths and Women” and led by Charity Ijoshe Omole, cites a loss of confidence in Senator Natasha due to alleged gross misconduct, abuse of office, and behavior deemed embarrassing to the people of Kogi Central. According to Omole, over 250,000 of the district’s 488,000 registered voters signed the petition, surpassing the threshold required by INEC to initiate a recall process under Section 69 of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria. However, the numbers have drawn significant scrutiny. During the 2023 Kogi Central senatorial election, which Natasha won, only about 105,000 voters participated. The sudden surge to 250,000 signatures in 2025 has led many to question the petition’s authenticity, with some, like X user @OurFavOnlineDoc, sarcastically noting that “ghosts who did not exist to vote in 2023 are now magically interested in her recall in 2025.”