Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central, has written a petition to the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, and the Kogi State Commissioner of Police, Miller Dantawaye, accusing some people of forging signatures in the petition to recall her from the Senate.

A group of people from her district, led by Charity Ijese, submitted over 250,000 signatures to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Abuja. They want Akpoti-Uduaghan removed from office. This came after she was suspended from the Senate on March 6 for alleged misconduct.

On Tuesday, INEC confirmed it had received the recall petition. However, the electoral body said the petition was missing important details like contact addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses of the petitioners. By the next day, INEC informed Akpoti-Uduaghan and Senate Presiding Officer Akpabio that these details had been updated.

Later, videos appeared on social media showing politicians in Kogi State signing the recall petition. This raised questions about the authenticity of the signatures.

Victor Giwa, the head of Akpoti-Uduaghan’s legal team, stated that they have officially reported the alleged forgery to the police. “Firstly, we are aware that those signatures were forged, and it is the act of APC members in Kogi State, who are desperate to remove her. Secondly, we are prosecuting the case in court. We have written our petition regarding the forgery, and we are submitting it to the Inspector General of Police, the Kogi State Commissioner of Police, and INEC. Before 1 pm today (Friday), they would have received it.”

He further explained that they took the petition to the police becuase forgery is a criminal matter. “INEC does not have the materials to examine a case of forgery. What they are expected to do is compare whether the signatures correspond with the ones signed by the owners. But we are alleging that it is a case of forgery, and only the police can handle cases of forgery. Let the petitioners present the signatures, and let the police subject them to forensic tests for us to confirm that they were not forged,” Giwa added.

Now that the petition has been submitted, INEC is expected to check the signatures against the voter records in each polling unit. However, Giwa insists that before INEC can continue with the recall process, the forgery allegations must be addressed, especially since a related court case is still ongoing.

“The case is in court, and INEC is aware. Secondly, we are now dealing with allegations of fraud. Some people submitted certain signatures, and others claim they were forged, which is a criminal matter. So, as an institution, I believe INEC would need to submit the signatures to the police to confirm whether or not there is forgery. And this should come before the verification exercise,” he added.
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