The Senate, on Tuesday, dismissed a petition of sexual harassment against Senate President Godswill Akpabio, filed by the suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan (PDP, Kogi Central).
The petitioner, Mr. Zuberu Yakubu, representing the suspended Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan, accused the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions of bias and of denying him a fair hearing.
Appearing before the committee on Tuesday, Yakubu was accompanied by his legal counsel, Dr. Abiola Akiyode, and former Minister of Education, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili. He initially refused to speak unless Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan, his principal witness, was allowed entry into the National Assembly.
A heated exchange erupted during the hearing between Senator Onyekachi Nwaebonyi (APC, Ebonyi North) and Ezekwesili after tensions escalated when Yakubu attempted to speak while the Committee chairman, Senator Neda Imasuen, was addressing the panel. Yakubu was instructed to mute his microphone, prompting Ezekwesili to intervene.
Nwaebonyi, present as a witness for Akpabio, interjected, leading to a sharp verbal confrontation with the former minister.
“Compose yourself and stop making noise,” Ezekwesili told Nwaebonyi.
Angered by her remark, the Senator Nwaebonyi fired back: “You’re a fool. What do you mean? Why are you talking to me like that? I will not take it. You’re an insult to womanhood. People like you cannot be here.”
Ezekwesili responded by calling him a “hooligan,” escalating the confrontation and briefly halting the proceedings of the legislative panel.
Order was later restored, but Imasuen announced that the case was already before a court, leading to an abrupt adjournment of the hearing.
Speaking to journalists after the dismissal of the petition, Yakubu explained that he refused to make a statement before the committee because he believed the hearing was biased.
He directly challenged the committee chairman, Senator Imasuen (LP, Edo South), for making prejudicial comments in the media before the hearing.
“How can the chairman serve as a judge in a case where he has already publicly taken a position? He was quoted in the media saying the petition was ‘dead on arrival.’ This means he had already made up his mind before even hearing us. How can we expect fair treatment?” Yakubu questioned.
He also alleged that some committee members had prior affiliations with the Senate President, further compromising their impartiality.
“One of the committee members denied this today, but he had previously stated on Channels TV that he is a key witness for the Senate President. In such a situation, how can we expect a fair hearing?” he asked.
A major point of contention was the exclusion of Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan, whom Yakubu described as the principal witness with crucial documentary evidence.
“In my petition, I clearly stated that my witness would present her evidence personally. But she was barred from entering the National Assembly. If my key witness is denied access, how can I proceed?” he asked.
Yakubu further accused the committee of using “defensive tactics” to avoid addressing the real issues.
“The committee had already made up its mind. They are simply playing a game, using procedural excuses to justify their actions. In Nigeria today, we are not following the Constitution. If we don’t uphold the Constitution, how can we expect peace and justice?” he added.
Also speaking, Dr. Abiola Akiyode, legal counsel to the petitioner, argued that the Senate’s decision lacked consistency.
“There is nothing in Yakubu’s petition that wasn’t in Senator Natasha’s original petition. If the Senate dismissed her petition as ‘dead on arrival,’ then logically, Yakubu’s should also be dismissed. Instead, they invited him and then dismissed his case on the grounds that it was in court,” she said.
She criticised the committee’s approach, arguing that it was designed to extract additional information from the petitioner rather than conduct a fair hearing.
“If they knew the matter was already in court, why did they invite the petitioner at all? They should have simply informed him that they could not entertain it. Instead, they brought him here, only to tell him they couldn’t proceed. This shows clear bias and a disregard for constitutional principles,” she stated.
Akiyode also raised concerns over the Senate’s rules seemingly overriding the Constitution, particularly in the six-month suspension of Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan.
“The Constitution and the Senate rules on fair hearing do not align. The Senate is acting as if it operates outside the Constitution, which is why they can suspend a senator without following due process,” she added.
Former Minister of Education Oby Ezekwesili, who attended the hearing as a witness for Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan, described the committee’s conduct as a gross violation of the Nigerian Constitution.
“The Nigerian Senate is now telling citizens that Senate rules take precedence over the Constitution in a democracy. This is deeply troubling,” she said.
Ezekwesili argued that the Senate’s internal rules should not supersede national laws.
“This was exactly what happened in Senator Natasha’s suspension. The Senate prioritized its internal rules over the Constitution. Now, they have done the same thing again, using procedural loopholes to deny justice,” she added.
She emphasized that an independent committee should be set up to hear the case fairly.
“The petitioner has made it clear—he does not trust this committee to deliver justice. The Senate should constitute a neutral panel that ensures due process is followed,” she insisted.
Ezekwesili also reiterated that barring Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan from appearing as a witness further demonstrated the Senate’s bias.
“By preventing Senator Natasha from testifying, they have denied the petitioner a fair hearing. She is the principal witness, and her absence only harms the credibility of the process,” she said.
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