By Akinwale Kasali
Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, PDP, Kogi Central, has dropped a bombshell. She has raised a storm in the Senate.
The Senator had, a few days ago, clashed with the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio over a seating arrangement. She had been relocated to another seat. But she maintained her former seat. When asked to let go, she refused. And when she stood up and wanted to explain herself, Senate President, Godswill Akpabio refused. He asked her to go to her newly allocated seat before she could speak. When she insisted on being heard out, Akpabio ordered that she be “kicked out” of the Senate Chambers.
That clash has since escalated with Akpoti-Uduaghan suing the SP, his Legislative Aide, Patrick Mfon and the Federal Government to the tune of N100bn for defamation and N300m for legal costs.
However, on Friday morning, February 28, the situation became a full blown scandal when Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan appeared on Arise Television’s popular programme, “The Morning Show”.
She revealed that her problem with Akpabio did not begin recently. It’s been on for months. And boiled down now to her being openly victimised, humiliated and maligned by Akpabio.
She explained that the root cause is because she refused to give in to Akpabio’s se&ual advances.
She compared her situation to that of a University student who gets marked down by her Lecturer because she refused to give in to the Lecturer’s dirty requests and advances.
indicating the Senate President, Godswill Obot Akpabio of witch hunting, Victimizing, Punishing and frustrating her because she refused his sexual advances.
She stated that Akpabio persistently contacted her on WhatsApp and that she has evidence to support her claims.
She further stated that her husband is a witness and challenged the Department of State Services, DSS, to retrieve their conversations for verification.
Her words:
“The Senate President made a mistake by not allowing me to speak on that Order 10.
“The Senate President has the right to allocate seats, and senators should adhere, but for a senator to invoke Order 10, it means their privileges have been trampled upon, and that can be raised anywhere at any time.
“So, once a senator shouts Order 10, even if they are being dragged on the floor, they are supposed to be heard.
“Once I raised Order 10, the Senate President ought to have allowed me to speak. He could have used his discretion to move that complaint to the Ethics and Privileges Committee or overrule it, but he failed to do that. Instead, he ordered the Sergeant-at-Arms to remove me from the chambers and prepare for my suspension.
“I did mention that in the Senate, I have been dehumanised, maligned, and all that, and I believe that this situation was just the straw that broke the camel’s back.
“Many people do not know what I’m about to say, and I’m going to speak my truth while the Senate President is allowed to counter it.
“It all started on December 8, 2023, a day before my birthday and his. We were all in Akwa Ibom, and he held my hand, saying he wanted to show me around his house. My husband was walking behind us.
“I noticed that he hastened his pace while still holding my hand, and then he got to a particular sitting room and said, ‘Do you like my house?’ I said, ‘Of course, sir, every room is beautiful.’ He then said, ‘Now that you are a senator, I’m going to create time for us to come and spend quality moments here—you will enjoy it.’
“When I turned to look at my husband to see if he had heard that or not, the Senate President also turned and said, ‘Let me show you my Chapel as well.’
“That evening, we left his house at about 11 pm and my husband asked what the Senate President told me. I wondered whether I should tell him what the Senate President said about bringing me there to ‘have a good time’ or if I should just let it go because I knew how much my husband adored him.
“In February, I wanted to move a motion for the investigation of anti-corruption practices at Ajaokuta Steel Company. I listed that motion five times, but it was only on the sixth attempt that it was approved. Many senators can testify to that. Each time the motion was listed, he would say, ‘Senator Natasha, we can’t take this motion because the good of the Senate does not accommodate it.’
“He kept doing that, so I went to his office and said, ‘You know how important the Ajaokuta Steel Company is to me and my people. I’ve noticed that you have repeatedly stepped down this motion.’ He replied, ‘Natasha, I’m 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 I would pretend I didn’t hear that. He then said, ‘The ball is in your court.’ When I got home, I told my husband to speak to the Senate President to allow my motion to go through.
“You know when a student keeps failing because they refuse to sleep with a lecturer? That is exactly what I have been facing, in simple terms.
“Regarding the nightclub incident, I believe that was not a slip of the tongue. He had told me that there are a number of ways we can have fun if we travel.”
The Senate, just before Akpoti-Uduaghan sued, had referred hervto the Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions for a possible disciplinary action.
The committee, chaired by Senator Neda Imaseun (LP, Edo South), has been given two weeks to submit its findings.
The decision was reached after a voice vote by the lawmakers who emphasized the need to maintain parliamentary decorum.
The spokesperson for the Senate, Senator Yemi Adaramodu had raised the issue on the floor of the Senate, which was seconded by the Majority Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, who said the Senate Committee on Ethics should wade into the matter.
As at the time of filing in this report, neither the Senate leadership nor Akpabio has responded to Akpoti-Uduaghan’s allegations against the Senate President.
Discover more from The Source
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
