Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan has once again presented a petition to the Senate, accusing Senate President Godswill Akpabio of sexual harassment. However, this time, the petition was signed by her constituents.
During Thursday’s plenary session, Senator Natasha was asked whether the case was already in court, to which she responded that it was not. Following standard procedure, she was instructed to formally submit the petition, which was then referred to the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Code of Conduct for investigation.
The committee has been given four weeks to complete its inquiry and report back to the Senate.
This is the second time the Kogi Central lawmaker has raised the allegation in the chamber. A previous petition was dismissed on Wednesday due to procedural issues.
Meanwhile, tensions rose slightly before Thursday’s plenary as Senate Chief Whip Tahir Munguno expressed concerns over Senator Natasha’s repeated violations of Senate protocol.
Referring to Order 55, Rule 1, Senator Munguno emphasized that all senators are required to remain standing upon the entry of the presiding officer until they take their seats. He accused Senator Natasha of consistently disregarding this rule and noted that the issue had been widely reported in the media.
“I had to send one of the Sergeants-at-Arms to inform her that she was in breach of the rule,” he stated. “Mr. President, if you are seeking refuge under Order 10 of the rule book, then you cannot approbate and reprobate at the same time. It is the institution that she is disrespecting”.
Addressing her directly, Munguno urged her to comply with the Senate’s regulations and avoid further violations.
“Senator Natasha, as my good friend and colleague, please ensure you comply and do not continue breaching the rules,” he said.
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