Victor EzejaKogi Central Senator, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has charged Nigeria’s Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, to submit himself to scrutiny in the allegations of sexual harassment she made against him recently.
Akpoti-Uduaghan stated this while responding to Akpabio’s claim that she has been fond of making “useless allegations” against people in the past.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelSpeaking at an event to commemorate the International Women’s Day, Akpabio claimed that Akpoti-Uduaghan has been traumatising people with unfounded allegations, adding that he has become one of the Kogi lawmaker’s victims.
This comes after the Kogi lawmaker accused the Senate President of sexual harassment.
The accusation came after a heated exchange between Akpoti-Uduaghan and Akpabio over when she rejected the relocation of her seat during plenary two weeks ago.
Last week, the Senate suspended Akpoti-Uduaghan for six months, on the ground of gross misconduct.
The incident has sparked reactions across the country. Many rights groups and activists condemned the decision of the upper legislative chamber and called for a fair hearing.
The Senate President queried why Akpoti-Uduaghan had not revealed what she claimed happened on 8 December 2023 during his birthday celebration in Akwa Ibom and only so now that they had a disagreement over her seat relocation.
He said: “This was said to have happened on the 8th of December, a day before my birthday, which was celebrated in the stadium in 2023. So, from the 8th of December 2023, I never heard, my wife never heard, no Nigerian ever heard, even the husband never heard any issue of sexual harassment until her committee was changed, and her seat was changed.
“Have you ever wondered about the trauma caused by that same woman on the other people she has accused in the past? None has been proved so far. Do you even wonder the trauma this caused to the 10th Senate and the image of the Senate with all these useless allegations? I have refrained from making a statement.”
The Senate President said he has come across many women but never sexually harassed any of them.
We need Formal Investigation To Unravel Truth – Akpoti-Uduaghan
Responding, Akpoti-Uduaghan, however, said she was not the first person to accuse Akpabio of sexual harassment as a former Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission, Joy Nunieh, also did sometime in the past.
She called for a formal investigation into her allegations to unravel the truth.
In a statement by her lawyer, Victor Giwa, the Kogi lawmaker alleged that Akpabio was using his position as Senate President to manipulate Senate proceedings to avoid being investigated.
Giwa alleged that his client was being victimised for refusing to yield to the alleged request by the Senate President.
“Is it true that Natasha has been prevented from participating in international engagements involving senators? Is it true that she has been forced to use her funds for official trips while others have their expenses covered? These are hard facts that need to be addressed,” the stated.
He said the Kogi lawmaker would not drop her litigation against the Senate President despite pressures from different stakeholders for her to do so.
The lawyer added that his Akpoti-Uduaghan welcomes the involvement of the Women Affairs Minister and others who are trying to mediate in the matter. He revealed that a meeting between them has been scheduled for next week.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with seven years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Master's degree in Mass Communication.
