Contradictions Mar Senator Natasha’s Allegations Against Akpabio – Agbakoba Insists

Senior Advocate of Nigeria and former president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Dr Olisa Agbakoba, has once again demanded that Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan retract her sexual harassment allegations against Senate President Godswill Akpabio.

Agbakoba criticised the senator for failing to clarify glaring contradictions in her claims, particularly concerning the timeline of events and her public conduct following the alleged incident.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Agbakoba’s law firm, Olisa Agbakoba Legal (OAL), represents Akpabio in the matter.

Naijaonpoint recalls that on April 14, Agbakoba sent an earlier letter to the senator representing Kogi Central, demanding that she present verifiable proof to support her allegations of sexual misconduct by the Senate President.

The accusation, which stirred significant controversy, eventually led to Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension from the Senate.

Speaking at a press conference in Lagos on Tuesday, Agbakoba stated that the second letter was necessary due to the senator’s failure to address discrepancies identified in her initial claims.

He pointed out that instead of responding to concerns raised over inconsistencies—specifically regarding the date she alleged harassment and her subsequent public praise of Akpabio on social media—Akpoti-Uduaghan had simply removed ...s in question.

The legal luminary said, “Recall that in our first letter to you, we requested clarification of contradictions in your allegation against our client, Akpabio.

“Of note is the contradiction as to timeline and dates. You have failed to clarify your sexual harassment allegation on Dec. 8, 2023 and your exaltation of Akpabio on your social media accounts (Instagram and X/Twitter) on Dec. 9, 2023 – the day after you alleged he sexually harassed you.

“Rather than clarify this contradiction, you deleted the social media post, which to us is extremely concerning.”

Agbakoba went on to stress that the burden of proof remains on the accuser and questioned why the senator took over a year to go public with her claim.

“You claim that the sexual harassment occurred on Dec. 8, 2023 but your allegation was not made until Feb. 28 2025. One year and 2 months after?

“Additionally, rather than take up this serious allegation that occurred on Dec.8, 2023, you were seen throughout 2024 at several legislative and non-legislative events (locally and internationally) with Akpabio, your alleged harasser.

“For example, you were seen together at the Inter-Parliamentary Union session in Geneva on March 24 and March 25 2024. In fact, you took several selfies and group photos with him during these events.

“All these events were posted in warm tones by you on your social media platforms. Please see screenshot copies of your Facebook post(s) and other photos you took with Akpabio. We find this contradictory and unbelievable.

“In light of this and having also failed to clarify inconsistencies pointed in our first letter to you, we demand that you retract the sexual harassment allegations against our client as they are clearly false and unsubstantiated,” Agbakoba declared.