‘Recall process of lawmaker in Nigeria is tedious, almost impossible to achieve’ – Dr. Kabiru Sufi
The petition seeking Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan’s recall, representing the Kogi Central Senatorial District, failed to meet the constitutional requirements outlined in Section 69(a) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced this Thursday via its official X handle.
The move to recall lawmakers in Nigeria on several occasions has met a brick wall.
A Chief Lecturer at the Kano State College of Education and Preliminary Studies, Dr. Kabiru Said Sufi, has described the constitutional process of recalling a lawmaker in Nigeria as legally possible but practically difficult.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with SolaceBase, the political and public affairs analyst pointed out that no senator or House of Representatives member has ever been successfully recalled in Nigeria due to the rigorous process, including the requirement for 50% of registered voters to sign a petition—an unrealistic threshold considering that most legislators were elected with just 25-27% voter participation.
SolaceBase: What are the grounds for recalling a Senator or House of Representatives member, and what is the typical process for initiating a recall effort?
Dr. Sufi: There are several grounds on which a legislator can be recalled. One of them is when there is poor representation, or when the electorate is not satisfied with the quality of legislation or representation, or when there are many other issues causing disaffection or dissatisfaction.
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On the part of the electorate, that applies to their legislator. In this case, a senator or a member of the House of Representatives, or a member of the State House of Assembly, as provided by the Constitution.
SolaceBase: Can you explain the role of INEC in verifying and processing a recall petition?
Dr. Sufi: Sections 69 and 110 of the Nigerian Constitution are where the recall process is made possible and analyzed, and it comprises mainly three things. The first is the submission of a petition or a request by the constituency or the constituents stating that they want to recall their legislator.
In this case, a senator or a member of the House of Representatives or a House of Assembly member. That request should be submitted after being signed by 50% of registered voters in the constituency. As soon as that request is submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), they are expected to conduct a referendum, which is the second part—to conduct the referendum within 90 days to determine whether the legislator will be recalled, as explained by Section 110 of the Constitution.
Now, the process is also another long and tedious one, which includes the collection of signatures and then the verification of the signatures by the Independent National Electoral Commission. Many other issues have been explained in the Electoral Act. Sections 2 and 113 of the Electoral Act further explain the process through which INEC will verify the signatures and then conduct the referendum. There is also a specification that a certain percentage of the registered voters must participate, and the majority will have to indicate in the referendum that they want to recall the legislator.
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So, the process of recall is seen to be synonymous with or at par with the process of impeachment. That is, if elected executives have this provision for their impeachment, such as the governor and the deputy governor or the president and the vice president, then legislators, too, as elected representatives, have this provision. So, for us, it is a process of checking the exercise of their powers.
What are the key steps involved in gathering signatures and support for a recall petition, and what are the common challenges faced?
Well, as soon as the petition or request is received, the role of the electoral officials will include the verification of the signatures, followed by organizing and conducting the referendum.
First of all, they must ensure that the constitutional requirement—that 50% of registered voters have signed—is met. Then, the signatures will be verified, and the referendum process will be initiated and executed. If it satisfies all the requirements of the Constitution—that is, Sections 69 and 110—as well as all the provisions of the Electoral Act, especially Section 2 and Section 113 of the Electoral Act as amended, then a declaration will be made as to whether the recall process is successful or not.
SolaceBase: How does the legislator or the recalled individual’s office respond to a successful recall petition, and what are the subsequent procedures for replacing the recalled lawmaker?
Well, there are a lot of challenges with initiating the request—such as who will start or initiate the process, and who will collect the signatures. Then, later on, even with the verification of the signatures, the problem with collecting and verifying signatures usually stems from the fact that it’s difficult, in reality, to get 50% of registered voters to sign. That’s number one.
Number two, not many Nigerians are consistent with their signatures. So, having to verify the signatures as contained in the voter’s card and those on the petition is usually another tedious process. And, of course, meeting the 50% threshold is another major challenge.
Most elections in Nigeria are won with between 25% to 27% participation of registered voters. So, I think insisting on having 50% of registered voters sign the petition or the recall request is going way overboard. Also, getting 50% to sign is quite difficult.
So, many people are saying that the legislators—or those who designed this process—have done it in such a way that it is almost impossible to achieve successfully, especially when it comes to meeting the 50% requirement. But even if you have that, the process of conducting the referendum and ensuring that a large number of people participate also makes it nearly impossible.
SolaceBase: Has there been any successful recalls of lawmakers in Nigeria since the 1999 Constitution came into effect, and what were the circumstances surrounding those cases?
As soon as the process is successful, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) will inform the Senate, the House of Representatives, or the House of Assembly.
Once that communication is received, it will be conveyed to the affected legislator, and he ceases to be a legislator. A by-election will then be scheduled by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
It will be conducted promptly, and a replacement will be elected to avoid a vacuum or lack of representation for the affected area. But in reality, considering the challenges we’ve mentioned earlier, one would say it is almost impossible.
There’s an allegation that it was deliberately made difficult through constitutional amendments, especially the Electoral Act. The 2010 amendments, in particular, have made it nearly impossible. In the last 25 years, it has never been conducted successfully. Of course, there were attempts, especially those engineered by the executive arm against legislators who had fallen out of favor with them.
But none was successful. I think in the Second Assembly of the Fourth Republic, House of Representatives member Farouk Ademualiu—during the Obasanjo regime—faced an engineered recall process when the Assembly was almost winding up. It failed. He triumphantly returned to the House with his shoulders high because the process wasn’t successful.
So, no recall attempt has been successful in the last 25 years, largely because of how difficult the process is. People are asking why 50% of registered voters are required to sign a recall petition when, in most cases, elections are won with only 25% to 27% voter turnout. If only 25% or 27% of voters elected someone, why require 50% to initiate a recall? Many argue that the 50% threshold is too high and nearly unrealistic.
Moreover, when it comes to signature verification, most Nigerians register to vote just for the sake of registration. Many don’t actually vote, and some don’t even keep their voter cards. That makes it difficult for them to participate in the recall process, even if they’re interested. There are several other issues too. Even the conduct of the referendum itself is problematic. Many people say there are operational issues with the constitutional recall process that need to be addressed if we truly want to have a functional recall mechanism.
The same applies to the impeachment process—it also needs review to effectively check the excesses of elected officials, whether in the executive or legislative arms.
This system can be strengthened. Even in other democracies, such as the United States of America, there is no recall provision in the federal constitution. Still, some states in the U.S.—just about 19 out of 50—have recall provisions. And even then, it is rarely used.
But I think it’s worth looking into how we can make the process operational and feasible. And the same should apply to impeachment—to keep elected politicians on their toes.
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