The spokesperson for the Senate, Senator Yemi Adaramodu, has said that the sexual harassment allegation levelled by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan against the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, is not before the Senate for probe.
Adaramodu mentioned that the only case before the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petition is Akpoti-Uduaghan not complying with the Senate standing orders.
“The only matter before the Senate is between Senator Natasha and the rest of the senators, that she is not complying with the standing orders of the Senate. No other issues,” the Senate spokesperson said while speaking on Arise TV’s Morning Show on Monday
Hre added, “Then, if there is anything that comes tomorrow about any senator in the National Assembly, the ethics, privileges, and public petition committee will review once it is referred to them. It is going to be taken as an internal affair.
“In the hallowed chamber, whatever we do or say is not actionable in the court, so because of that, the committee will treat the issue as it comes.
“The Senate does not run the committee with senators. The Senate President does not even run with its members. It is an independent committee.”
Recall Akpabio came under fire after the Akpoti-Uduaghan representing Kogi Central, accused him of sexual harassment and intimidation.
While Akpabio denied the allegation, opposition stakeholders as former Vice President Atiku Abubakar demanded an investigation by an independent panel.
Akpoti-Uduaghan linked her recent ordeal in the Senate to her refusal to accept sexual advances from Akpabio.
The lawmaker, who made headlines last week after a public disagreement with the Senate President, laid the allegations during an interview on Arise Television on Friday.
Her latest dispute with Akpabio began when she discovered that her seating position in the Red Chamber had been changed without her knowledge. She voiced her frustration, causing a temporary disruption in legislative proceedings.
Following the incident, she was referred to the Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions for disciplinary review.
The committee, led by Senator Neda Imaseun (Labour Party, Edo South) was given two weeks to report back to the House for further actions.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, while fighting back, slammed a N100bn suit on Akpabio for alleged defamation.
The suit was filed before the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja, with Akpabio and his senior legislative aide, Mfon Patrick, listed as the second to third defendants, respectively.
In the suit, the lawmaker through her lawyer, Victor Giwa, referred to Akpabio’s words published by his aide on his Facebook page with the title, ‘Is local content committee of the senate Natasha’s birthright?’ where he said the claimant thought being a lawmaker was all about pancaking her face and wearing transparent outfits to the chambers.
Giwa alleged that the statement was defamatory, provocative and disparaging, and lowered Akpoti-Uduaghan’s dignity in the eyes of her colleagues and right-thinking members of the public.
On Friday, the lawmaker opened a new face to the matter when, on Arise Television’s Morning Show, she blamed her troubles in the Senate on her refusal to sleep with the Senator President.
“My issue with Akpabio started on December 8, 2023, when my husband and I attended a pre-birthday invitation extended by the Senate President at his residence in Uyo. We had earlier gone to his house at Ikot-Ekpene, and he held my hand and said he wanted to show me around his house. Just the three of us, my husband and him. I noticed he hastened his pace while still holding my hand, and he got to this particular sitting room.
“He asked, ‘Do you like my house?’ and I replied, ‘Of course yes,’ and he said, ‘Now that you are a Senator, you are going to create time for us to spend quality time here, and you will enjoy it.’
“Later, on the floor of the Senate, I attempted to raise a motion regarding corrupt practices at the Ajaokuta Steel Company. I listed this motion five times, and it was only on the sixth occasion that it appeared on the order paper.
“When I approached the Senate President to enquire why my motion had been repeatedly stepped down, he told me, ‘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 told him that I would pretend I didn’t hear that. My case is a case of a student being punished by a lecturer for refusing to sleep with him.”
She added that her colleagues had cautioned her to adhere to the seat allocation because it was a ploy.
“I was approached by a sergeant-at-arms in the Senate chamber who informed me that my seat had been changed by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio. This was news to me because I had attended the last session and had not been informed of any changes.
“Before the Senate President could announce my suspension, I needed to invoke Order 10, which serves as an SOS for Senators who feel their rights have been breached. The Senate President made a mistake by not allowing me to speak on Order 10,” she said.
Reactions have trailed the allegations, with many calling for investigation.
In response, Atiku called the allegation serious, emphasising the need for a thorough, impartial, and transparent investigation.
The 2023 Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party stated, “Like millions of Nigerians, I watched with deep concern this morning as Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan raised serious allegations of sexual harassment, intimidation, and mistreatment against the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio. These allegations are grave and deserve a thorough, impartial, and transparent investigation.
“As the third most powerful figure in the country, the Senate President should embody unimpeachable character.”
Atiku urged President Bola Tinubu and the Senate to treat the allegations with seriousness and ensure a credible, transparent, and independent investigation.
Meanwhile, the media consultant to the Senate President, Kenny Okulogbo, described the allegation as a tissue of lies.
Okulogbo said the lawmaker was angry because she was removed as the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Local Content.
He said, “All that Senator Natasha said are all tissues of lies. She is just angry because she was removed as the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Local Content.”
Also, the wife of the Senate President, Mrs Ekaette Akpabio, said the allegation against her husband was false and unfounded.
Speaking to journalists on Friday, Mrs Akpabio defended her husband’s character, stating that he was a disciplinarian who respected women.
“There is no way that a man as disciplined as that can think of taking a woman to his home. He has a lot of respect for me and the children. In Akwa Ibom, when he was a governor, a lot of women were involved in governance, and none of them ever said something like this. The senate president is a very responsible and disciplined man,” she said.