Embattled Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central in the Red Chamber, has accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of allegedly instructing former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello to eliminate her.
She further claimed that the current governor, Usman Ododo, is complicit in the alleged plot against her.
This revelation comes amidst an ongoing attempt to recall her from the National Assembly. Last week, some constituents from Kogi Central submitted a recall petition against her to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which is expected to verify the signatures attached to the petition.
According to INEC regulations, the recall process requires more than half of the registered voters in the senatorial district to sign the petition. If this threshold is met, a referendum must be conducted within 90 days.
Under INEC’s recall guidelines, if the petition garners sufficient support, the commission will issue a public notice specifying the time, date, and location of the referendum.
Given the complexity and cost of a recall process, political analysts suggest that the move to unseat Akpoti-Uduaghan may be politically motivated and backed by influential figures.
The recall effort follows a series of controversies involving the senator, who was suspended from the Senate on March 6 for alleged “gross misconduct” after a dispute with Senate President Akpabio.
Addressing her supporters during a rally in her hometown of Ihima, Okehi Local Government Area, Kogi State, on Wednesday, Akpoti-Uduaghan said the attempt to recall her was plotted by Akpabio in connivance with other leaders in the All Progressives Congress (APC).
She said, “Let me say this now. On the 14th of March at 10:30 p.m.—mind you, two days before that, on the 12th—Akpabio spoke to Governor Ododo to recall me. But he told him it would be impossible because the masses are with her, the people are with her. But Akpabio was not satisfied.
“He then called for Yahaya Bello. And it was actually Senator Asuquo (Asuquo Ekpenyong, Cross River South) from Cross River who drove Yahaya Bello from Hilton Hotel. I was informed of everything. And when I got to know—hold on. The meeting was in two parts. He told him to commence my recall and that he was going to fund it. Of course, money changed hands that night.
“The second thing he told him was that he should try and kill me. I didn’t make this public, but I wrote to the IG of Police. And Akpabio told Yahaya Bello—I am standing on what I’ve said. He told him that he should make sure that killing me does not happen in Abuja, that it should be done here so it will seem as if it’s the people that killed me here. I didn’t make that public, but we did notify the security agencies of that.”
