“Next Time Akpabio Harasses Any Woman, He Must Get Ready. Enough Is Enough” – Oby Ezekwesili

By Adesina Soyooye

“But for the Judiciary, how would Akpabio become Senate President”

From Mrs Oby Ezekwesili, a former Minister for Education, comes a warning to Senate President, Godswill Akpabio. “Next time Mr Akpabio harasses any woman, well-elected, unlike him, and representing  her constituency, @ the National Assembly or any woman at all anywhere in this country, he must get ready. Enough is enough”.

Ezekwesili’s anger stems from the altercation between Akpabio and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan on the floor of the Senate during plenary a couple of days ago.

Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan had protested her being reassigned to another chair without the courtesy of telling her. It escalated when she tried to make a contribution, but the Senate President would not let her, and insisted she would not be allowed to contribute from where she was because it was a breach of the Senate protocol. When she made to clarify, Akpabio ordered that she be “kicked” out of the Senate Chambers. That forced Akpoti-Uduaghan to talk back, explain herself, and tell Akpabio that she was not afraid of him.

She explained that she had always been on the receiving end of Akpabio’s condescending manner of speaking, and disclosed that the Senate President has been deliberately side-lining her and denying her of her privileges, including official trips.

The altercation, and what not a few people now see as a deliberate humiliation of women by Akpabio, has since taken the centre stage  of public discourse.

On Monday, Ezekwesili weighed in, and sent a notice to Akpabio that he would not come out smelling of roses next time he harasses any woman anywhere in the country, especially, those better qualified and well-elected than him.

Mrs Ezekwesili reminded Akpabio that for the untidiness at the Judiciary that saw him to the Senate, there was no way he could have been presiding over the Senate.

He wondered why Akpabio was always picking on female Senators, and told him to be ready next time because “enough is enough”.

Mrs Ezekwesili: “I tweeted last year that if not for the rottenness of our Judiciary,  Nigerians would not have an @Senator_Akpabio presiding over the upper house of our @nassnigeria-the Nigerian Senate @NGRSenate.

“This statement has been given proof by Mr Akpabio in the nearly  two years of his ‘leadership’ of the Senate.

“One issue stands out. Mr Akpabio implicitly thinks that his even more accomplished female colleagues must be humiliated in order for his ego to be assuaged.

“Is it not a shame that one day it is @NatashaAkpoti, another day, @Iretikindibe, and yet another day @NatashaAkpoti that are at the receiving end of the appalling misconduct of the topmost officer of our Legislature?

“And we wonder why Nigeria shamefully places at the lowest neighbourhood of the ranking  of countries on Women in public leadership,  specifically at 4 4%.

“I encourage the women in public leadership to never ever lose their voice. Continue to stand strong in your commitment to citizens and prove that representation matters.

“All aspects of data do in fact show that representation matters a lot.

“Next time Mr Akpabio harasses any woman well-elected unlike him and representing her constituency @ the National Assembly or any woman at all anywhere in the country, he must get ready. Enough is enough.”