The Suspended Senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has asserted that her suspension from the Senate was not the result of a simple seating dispute but a premeditated effort by Senate President Godswill Akpabio to silence her dissent.
Natasha disclosed this in an interview with Adeola Fayehun on YouTube on May 31, 2025. She noted that she once shared a cordial relationship with Akpabio, partly due to his longstanding friendship with her husband.
However, personal and political conflicts emerged when she resisted the Senate President’s alleged corruption demands.
“The narrative being pushed, that I caused a scene over a seat, is a lie,” she stated emphatically.
“I raised a matter of privilege under Chapter 4, Item 9b of the Senate Rules, which demands immediate attention. But Senate President Akpabio abruptly cut me off, ordered the Sergeant-at-Arms to escort me out, and instructed the Clerk to prepare my suspension letter. That wasn’t a spontaneous reaction—it was a script already written.”
“He has no authority to suspend a senator unilaterally on the Senate floor. The manner in which he ordered my suspension—as if I were a staff member in his living room—was not only unlawful but degrading. My reaction was a response to a decision already made,” she stated.
She further alleged that her troubles intensified after she submitted a formal petition against the Senate leadership a day before her suspension.
“My suspension was retaliation. The ethics report they referenced was merely a cover. I had raised serious allegations that shook the establishment, and the very next day, I was silenced.”
Natasha also revealed details about her tenure as Chair of the Senate Committee on Local Content. She accused Akpabio of demanding a “progress report” that she later learned was a euphemism for financial or political kickbacks.
“He laughed and directed me to meet a senior senator who bluntly said I should return money or jobs from committee dealings to him, when I asked how, I was told to pressure agencies, like the Minister of Petroleum or the Executive Secretary, to bring funds or positions for the Senate President. That is corruption, and I refused.”
Her refusal to comply, she said, fueled ongoing conflict with Akpabio. “I told my husband and confronted Akpabio directly, saying I wouldn’t participate. He replied, ‘Then you’re not fit to chair any committee.’ That’s when I realized this wasn’t about my performance—it was about illicit returns.”
The suspended senator also alleged that senators face coercion from unnamed political “fathers,” especially during budget negotiations. “Akpabio has turned Senate sessions into farcical distractions, masking behind-the-scenes lobbying and intimidation. What I experienced, many others silently endure.”
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