· Saraki, Fayemi, SERAP tackle Akpabio
By Amajama Adam
There seems to be no end in sight in the saga involving the suspended Senator representing Kogi Central, Natasaha Akpoti-Uduaghan and Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
Akpoti-Uduaghan was last week suspended for six months over what the senate said was an abuse of privilege, a decision that has been severely criticized by Nigerians.
Akpoti-Uduaghan had accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of making sexual advances towards her during a visit to his home in Akwa Ibom state. A claim he has denied.
Female senators disappointing – Erelu Bisi Fayemi
Former First Lady of Ekiti State, Erelu Bisi Fayemi has expressed her disappointment with both serving and former senators over their stance on the sexual allegations against Senate President.
Erelu Fayemi in an op-ed on Saturday took swipes at ex-senators Florence Ita-Giwa and Biodun Olujimi and incumbent Senator Ireti Kingibe representing the Federal Capital Territory.
Erelu Bisi Fayemi in the piece titled ‘Not About Natasha’ aturday, Bisi Fayemi said the submissions of Olujimi, Kingibe and Ita-Giwa were “extremely disappointing.”
According to her, “After she (Akpoti-Uduaghan) dropped the bomb, there was a flurry of activities. Senator Ireti Kingibe, a serving female Senator and two former female Senators – Senator Abiodun Olujimi and Senator Florence ita-Giwa, were invited to share their views,” she said.
“All three Senators are older friends or at least acquaintances of mine, and I have a lot of respect for them. However, I found their submissions extremely disappointing.
“It is one thing to argue that it is important to follow the rules. I don’t think anyone will insist on flouting the rules of such an important institution, especially if they are applied fairly and not subjectively.
“It was however clear that Senator Natasha felt beleaguered, and she believed that there was a score the Senate President wanted to settle with her.
“If this was the case, then I would have expected the three Senators to support a process that would enable Senator Natasha shed light on her serious allegations of sexual harassment (beyond national television) and for the Senate President to defend himself in a transparent manner.”
Bisi Fayemi said she was horrified that the trio could not stand up for another woman.
“To my horror, none of the female Senators deemed it necessary to stand up for another woman. Even if, in their opinion, Senator Natasha was misguided on matters of process and temperament, she was still entitled to have her fears and concerns heard,” she added.
“It is so painful that all three of them missed an opportunity to see the bigger picture, and address the constant intimidation, gaslighting and belittling women in leadership positions go through.”
Bisi Fayemi, a women rights advocate, said Akpoti-Uduaghan’s eventual suspension on March 6 for procedural rules violation was symptomatic of what women face in the workplace.
“To all the women who have publicly taken a position against Senator Natasha, I have news for you. You are not fighting the same battle as most of the male Senators or the men around us who have also aired their views. You are not on the same page, you are not even reading the same book,” the ex-first lady added.
“If it was just about Senator Natasha following the rules and not disrupting the space for women in politics, the problem can be easily fixed.”
Saraki tells Akpabio, “Stop trivializing of a serious issue”
Former Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, has described as “cheap politics and trivialising of a serious issue” the claim by incumbent Senate President, Godswill Akpabio that the call on him to ensure that transparent and open process is instituted to investigate the accusation levelled against him by one of his colleagues, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan is an attempt to remove a Niger Delta person from office.
Saraki, in a statement signed by Yusuph Olaniyonu, the head of his media office in Abuja, urged Akpabio to read his press statement dated March 1st, 2025 very well to understand that there was nowhere he suggested the resignation of the Senate President.
“Rather, he advised that Akpabio should act in the best interest of the legislative institution by ensuring that no reasonable person is left with any doubt about the fact that the allegations raised by the Senator were investigated and justifiably dispensed with.
“The attention of the Abubakar Bukola Saraki Media Office has been drawn to the statement made by Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio while addressing the leaders of some “youth ethnic groups” on Friday that certain individuals from Kwara and Adamawa States want him removed because he is from the Niger Delta region.
“Ordinarily, Dr. Saraki would have ignored the statement as a sign of the times in which we now live. However, its underlying motive of politicising and trivialising a serious issue that threatens the integrity, credibility, and importance of the legislature is the reason why we think we should not allow the Senate President to create a misleading impression of the issue at stake in the all-important institution that the National Assembly represents in our democracy.
“Dr. Saraki in his last comment on the Akpabio-Natasha Akpoti Uduaghan crisis never called on the Senate President to resign or step aside. Rather, he urged the Senate President to be conscious of the fact that perception is reality and therefore he should avoid treating the allegations by the Senator in a manner that will create the perception that the Senate as an institution is trying to cover up issues bothering on sexual harassment, gender discrimination, and abuse of office.
“Also, Dr. Saraki made it clear that his intervention was neither about Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan nor whether her claim was right or not. He stated that since the Senator has gone public with such serious allegations against the presiding officer, the image of the institution should be saved through an honest, sincere, open, transparent, and unbiased investigation.
“This issue is definitely not one in which Akpabio should exploit ethnic sentiments, political division, or regional proclivity. This will neither be in his own interest or that of the institution over which he is presiding. He should face the reality on ground and do what is right.”
“Recall Sen. Akpoti-Uduaghan or face legal action”
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, has urged Senate President Godswill Akpabio to “immediately rescind the patently unlawful suspension of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, as the purported suspension is based solely on the peaceful exercise of her constitutionally and internationally recognized right to freedom of expression.”
SERAP said, “The Senate should immediately reinstate Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan, and revise parliamentary procedures that unduly restrict senators’ human rights.”
In the open letter dated 8 March 2025 and signed by SERAP deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation said: “No one should ever be punished for ‘speaking without permission’. Being a senator does not deprive Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan of her fundamental human rights.”
SERAP said, “The Senate should be setting an example by upholding the rule of law and promoting and protecting fundamental human rights, not stamping them out.”
