The Nigerian Senate has suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan for six months following her sexual harassment allegation against Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
The decision, made on Thursday, March 6, 2024, was based on recommendations from the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions.
As part of the suspension, Akpoti-Uduaghan will lose access to her salary and security details would be withdrawn, and she would be barred from accessing the National Assembly premises.
Her office would also be locked, and her legislative aides would not receive their salaries during this period. The Senate further ruled out reconsidering her suspension until the six-month term ends or she submits a formal apology.
Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension follows a heated confrontation in the Senate, where she protested the reassignment of her seat by Akpabio. She arrived at a plenary session to find her nameplate removed and her seat reassigned, which she argued was an attempt to silence her.
Her suspension was put to a vote after she was denied the opportunity to speak, with the majority siding with the Ethics Committee’s report.
Senate Minority Leader Abba Moro supported the committee’s recommendation, stating that her actions warranted disciplinary action. He likened the move to “correcting a child,” referencing Nigerian cultural norms.
To appeal the suspension, Akpoti-Uduaghan must submit a written apology to the Senate for allegedly violating its rules.
The Ethics Committee originally recommended a six-month suspension but later reduced it to three months after the Senate considered the plea of Senate Minority Leader Senator Abba Moro (PDP, Benue South), who had requested a reduction.
A heated confrontation unfolded during a Senate plenary session two Thursdays ago when Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan protested the reassignment of her seat by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
The session took an unexpected turn as she arrived to find her seat reassigned, with her nameplate removed.
Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, raising her voice in protest, demanded an explanation for what she perceived as an unjustified move.
Following the incident, the matter was referred to the Ethics Committee over her actions during the plenary session.
Consequently, the Senate pushed the matter to the Senator Neda Imasuen-led Senate Committee on Ethics, Code of Conduct, and Public Petitions after the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, mandated the committee to conduct a holistic investigation and report back in two weeks.
The Senate’s resolution followed the consideration and adoption of a report presented by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Senator Adeyemi Adaramodu (APC, Ekiti South), on news publications and reports regarding the incident.
In his presentation, Adaramodu informed the Senate that the uproar during the plenary session the previous Thursday—when Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan openly challenged the Senate President over the reassignment of her seat—had severely damaged the Senate’s image.
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