Akpabio/Akpoti-Uduaghan tango, public morality and National Assembly’s integrity

By ‘Wale Sadeeq,

Like a film series, the Nigerian Senate has again found itself entangled by another crisis which largely calls to question the public morality of the lawmakers in the hallowed chamber of the upper legislative house and the integrity of the National Assembly as an institution.

The Senator representing Kogi Central Senatorial District, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan had, on Feb. 20, discovered that her seat had been reassigned upon resumption of the senate plenary session.

Refusing to comply with the new seating arrangement, the senator, who joined the senate in October 2023 following his victory at the Court of Appeal, engaged in heated altercation with the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.

Tahir Monguno, the Senate Chief Whip, had, at this point, raised a point of order, referencing sections of the senate rule book to justify the re-assignment of the seat.

Monguno said that the changes had become imperative owing to a shift in the senate’s composition following the movement of some opposition members to the majority wing.

According to the senator, such adjustments fall within the constitutional prerogative of the Senate President, warning that failure to comply with the new seating arrangement could lead to penalties, including being barred from participating in senate discussions.

“Any senator who refuses to comply with a seat re-assignment will not be recognised or allowed to contribute to discussions,” Monguno emphasised, quoting senate rules.

Monguno’s position was upheld by Akpabio, while he ruled in favour of the order.

However, when Akpoti-Uduaghan raised her hand to speak, she was denied recognition for not addressing the chamber from her newly-assigned seat.

This apparently forced the now feasibly enraged senator to engage in direct confrontation with the senate president.

“I don’t care if I am silenced; I am not afraid. You have denied me my privilege.

“Mr Senate President, ever since the night-club incidence, you have deliberately silenced my voice. My bills have not been able to scale through to second reading.

“I am not afraid of being silenced, but I will do so in honour. As a senator duly elected by my people, I chose to remain on this seat, come what may.

“The worst you can do is to suspend me from this sitting and that will not stop me from contributing my quota to my constituency, the senate and Nigeria as a whole,” she said.

Pointing her finger at Akpabio, Akpoti-Uduaghan said, “Mr Senate President, I have taken a lot from you.”

The incident had since set stage for series of drama in the senate, with accusations and counter-accusations among the dramatis personae.

While featuring at an Arise Television programme, Akpoti-Uduaghan, who had hitherto threatened to spill the beans, accused Akpabio of deliberately punishing her because of her refusal to accede to Akpabio’s alleged sexual advancement.

In the interview, Akpoti-Uduaghan alleged that the senate president made inappropriate advances toward her, both at his office and residence in Akwa Ibom during a visit on Dec. 8, 2023.

She claimed that Akpabio took her by the hand, led her around his house and made sexual advances toward her in the presence of her husband.

Akpoti-Uduaghan further alleged that Akpabio had, on a separate occasion, insinuated that she should “take care of him” if she wanted her motions to receive favourable consideration on the floor of the senate.

Meanwhile, the Senate Deputy Chief Whip, Onyekachi Nwebonyi, stood in stout defence of the senate president, saying that the sexual harassment allegations against him was politically-motivated and an attempt by Akpoti-Uduaghan to evade disciplinary action.

Nwebonyi, in a statement argued that the female senator’s claims were unsubstantiated and conveniently timed to deflect attention from the ongoing disciplinary process against her.

“If she truly believed she was being victimised because of an alleged sexual harassment incident, the proper forum to raise such a grievance would have been the senate itself, not a television interview.

“The senate is moved by reason and laws, not sentiments and drama,” he said.

The deputy chief whip also pointed out that Akpoti-Uduaghan was appointed as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Local Content in November 2023, before the alleged Akwa-Ibom incident.

“If she had truly been a victim, why would the senate leadership, under the same Akpabio, assign her such a critical leadership role?” the queried.

Nwebonyi said that the senate must not allow itself to be manipulated by baseless allegations, urging Akpoti-Uduaghan to pursue her claims through the appropriate legal channels rather than using the senate as a stage for diversionary theatrics.

He warned that legitimising such claims without any evidence could set a dangerous precedent, where anybody could make false accusations to disrupt senate proceedings.

Also defending Akpabio, his Media Consultant, Kenny Okulogbo, described the allegations as “tissues of lies”.

He said that the Kogi-born lawmaker was angry because of her removal as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Local Content.

“All that Sen. 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.

“The Senate President will respond. We will make an official statement soon,’’ Okulogbo said.

Akpoti-Uduaghan was, however, subsequently referred to the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, headed by a Labour Party senator from Edo, Neda Imasuen, for disciplinary review.

The committee was given two weeks to submit its report.

The development, which seems to be getting messier by the day, soon involved the spouses of the two dramatis personae, with each attempting to defend his/her better half.

Ekaette Akpabio, the wife of the senate president, had headed to court to institute multiple legal actions against Akpabio’s wife sues Natasha Akpoti, demanding N250 billion as damages over accusations of defamation against her husband.

Mrs Akpabio rejected the allegations, asserting that her husband is a disciplined individual, even as she described the senator’s accusations as “lies.”

Seeking redress for what she described as “scandalous and salacious” comments, Ekaette filed a fundamental rights suit at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court.