Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central senatorial district in the National Assembly on Thursday, March 6, 2025, submitted a fresh petition on sexual harassment against the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio at plenary.
Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan, unlike the petition she submitted on Wednesday which the Senate used technicalities to reject, submitted a petition on behalf of her constituents, led by Zubairu Yakubu.
Following her presentation of the petition, the Senate President asked her whether there were legal impediments to accepting the petition which she responded, saying there were none.
Following her clarification, the Senate President directed her to formally lay the petition before the Senate at about 12:38 pm.
Accordingly, the petition was referred to the Senate Committee on Ethics, Code of Conduct, and Public Petitions, chaired by Senator Neda Imasuen (LP, Edo South), with a directive to report back to the plenary within four weeks after legislative review.
The resubmission of the fresh petition by Akpoti-Uduaghan, following the rejection of the petition she submitted on Wednesday which generated some controversies following the point of Order raised by the Senate Chief Whip, Senator Mohammed Monguno (APC, Borno North), who argued that the matter could not be entertained or referred to the Ethics Committee, as it was sub judice since it was a case already in court involving Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan and Ekaette Akpabio, the wife of the Senate President.
Monguno also said that the petition could not be considered since Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan personally signed it.
Based on the issues raised by Monguno and the Senate Leader, Bamidele Opayemi, the Senate Ethics Committee dismissed the petition and declared it “dead on arrival.”
However, this latest petition submitted on Thursday, has added to the ongoing tensions between Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan and Akpabio.
