The lawmaker representing Kogi Central, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has revealed the deep tensions she experienced during her tenure as Chair of the Senate Committee on Local Content.
Naijaonpoint reports that she accused the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, of demanding a “progress report,” which she later discovered was an euphemism for financial or political returns.
Speaking in an interview with media personality Adeola Fayehun, Akpoti-Uduaghan disclosed that her refusal to comply with Akpabio’s demands led to a growing rift between them.
“I told my husband. I told Akpabio himself. I said I couldn’t do that, and he said, ‘Then you’re not fit to chair any committee.’ That’s how I knew this was not about performance, it was about returns,” Akpoti-Uduaghan said.
The senator’s bombshell revelations offer an inside look at the ongoing political tensions within the Senate, particularly highlighting the nature of compromises and the pressures senators face to secure political favours.
Akpoti-Uduaghan went on to discuss the broader climate in the Senate, alleging that senators are under constant pressure to satisfy the wishes of unnamed political “fathers,” especially during critical budget sessions.
“Akpabio has turned Senate sittings into comedy shows to distract from real issues. Behind the scenes, there’s pressure, there’s lobbying, there’s coercion. What I faced, many others are quietly enduring,” she said, raising concerns about the integrity of the legislative process.