THE senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of making sexual advances towards her severally, which she said she turned down.
She said her stance towards the advances was the reason for her incessant conflicts with the Senate President at plenaries within the National Assembly Complex.
Speaking during an interview on Arise Television’s “The Morning Show” on Friday, February 28, the female lawmaker claimed that some of Akpabio’s love proposals were made with her on the phone and face to face in her husband’s presence.
She further alleged that she had all the evidence for her claims.
She challenged the State Security Service (SSS), National Intelligence Agency (NIA), among others to probe her allegations.
She also said three other female senators among the 109 lawmakers in the Senate had been quiet about her plight.
According to her, the first time Akpabio made sexual advances to her was a day before her birthday and that of the Senate President who shares the same birthday with her.
“It all started on the 8th of December, 2023, which was a day before his birthday and my birthday. We are birthday mates. We were all in Akwa Ibom because he had a big fanfare in the stadium. We were at his house at Ikot Ekpene. Then, we all moved to his house in Uyo about 8 pm and he held my hand and said he wanted to show me around his house.
“My husband was walking behind us, just three of us. We were walking around from room to room. He showed me the beautiful interior. I noticed that he hastened his pace, while still holding my hand, and my husband was behind, still on his phone, but he was catching up whenever he could.
“And then he got to this particular sitting room and he said, ‘do you like my house?’ I said, of course, sir. Every room, beautiful, nice interior, quality taste. He said, now that you’re a senator, I’m going to create time for us to come spend quality moments here. You will enjoy it. At that point, I just pulled away and I was like, I don’t understand what exactly that meant. But then, my husband, when I turned around, my husband looked at me and looked at him.”
According to the lawmaker, her husband kept asking her what Akpabio told her but she kept it to herself because of the cordial relationship between her husband and the Senate President.
She said that was not the only time Akpabio had sexually harassed her.
She further alleged that the Senate President made advances towards her when she went to his office in February after failed efforts to get approval to move a motion concerning the moribund Ajaokuta Steel Mill.
“I listed that motion five times. It was the sixth time that it was listed on the order paper that was approved. Many senators can testify to that.
“I went to him in his office and I said, Senate President, you know how important this Ajaokuta Steel Company is to me. You know how important it is to my people and Nigerians.
“I was like, sir, please, why can’t I take this motion? It’s very important. He then said, ‘Natasha, I am the chief presiding officer of the Senate.
“You can enjoy a whole lot if you take care of me and make me happy.’ At that point, I said, sir, I’ll pretend that I didn’t hear this. He said, ‘Well, the ball is in your court.”
The lawmaker said she pleaded with her husband to help her appeal to Akpabio to allow her to raise her motion at the Senate and her husband had to travel to London to meet him on the issue.
She described the situation between her and the Senate President as a situation where a university lecturer kept failing a student because she refused to sleep with him.
Responding to her most recent conflict with Akpabio, which was about sitting arrangements in the Senate, she said she was not notified before she was ordered to move elsewhere in the chamber.
The ICIR reports that Akpoti-Uduaghan and Akpabio had had conflicts in the chamber. During a plenary in July 2024, Akpoti-Uduaghan commented on a motion without Akpabio’s consent.
In his attempt to correct her, he said the Senate was not a nightclub where anybody could talk anyhow.
Akpabio bowed to pressure as he apologised to Akpoti-Uduaghan two days later for comparing her conduct in the Senate to that of a nightclub.
The ICIR reported that the Senate President’s comment caused social media outrage as women groups criticised him for the action and described his attitudes towards female senators as not only insulting but a denigration of the female gender and an attempt to stifle female voices.
The female lawmaker referred to the ‘nightclub’ saga during her interview on Friday. She said it was a common word Akpabio always used whenever he spoke about the need for both of them to travel and have fun together.
The ICIR contacted the media aide to Akpabio, Eseme Eyibo, immediately after the interview was over for a reaction to the claims. He said he did not listen to the interview and would not respond immediately.
He requested the interview link to enable him to respond.
The ICIR reported that Akpoti-Uduaghan had announced on her social media handles Thursday morning that she would appear on Arise Television to speak on her feud with the Senate President.
A reporter with the ICIR
A Journalist with a niche for quality and a promoter of good governance
Marcus bears the light, and he beams it everywhere. He's a good governance and decent society advocate. He's The ICIR Reporter of the Year 2022 and has been the organisation's News Editor since September 2023. Contact him via email @ mfatunmole@icirnigeria.org