IPU reacts after Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan drags Akpabio to international body

IPU reacts after Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan drags Akpabio to international body

By Jeffrey Agbo

President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), Tulia Ackson, has assured suspended Kogi Central lawmaker, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, that the organisation will take appropriate steps after considering all perspectives on her suspension from the Nigerian Senate.

Ackson spoke in a video obtained on Wednesday following Akpoti-Uduaghan’s appeal to the IPU and the United Nations (UN) for intervention in what she described as an unjust suspension.

During the Women in Parliament session at the IPU meeting, the Nigerian lawmaker called for justice, urging global democratic institutions to address what she termed political victimisation.

She said, “Five days ago, on the 6th of March 2025, I was illegally suspended as a senator because I submitted a petition of sexual harassment against the President of the Nigerian Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio. I believed that submitting the petition would lead to a fair and transparent investigation, but instead, I was silenced and suspended.

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“My suspension came with severe conditions: my security was withdrawn, my official vehicles and other entitlements were taken away, my salary was cut off, and I was barred from appearing near the National Assembly. For six months, I am not allowed to present myself as a senator, either locally or internationally.

“This is a clear case of political victimization and a systematic effort to exclude women from leadership in Nigeria. If a female senator can be treated this way in full public view, imagine what ordinary Nigerian women face every day in workplaces and universities.”

She emphasised that her suspension was an attack on democracy, designed to silence the voices of her constituents who elected her.

In response, IPU President Ackson acknowledged Akpoti-Uduaghan’s concerns and assured the assembly that the organisation would take necessary steps after reviewing all sides of the issue.

“We have had her concerns and having heard her, it would have been an opportunity for all of us to understand more about what she has said. But because we listened only on her side as an institution, as IPU, we will be taking the concerns that have been raised, not only taking her side but also giving a chance to listen to the other side as it is a custom for IPU and after having listened to the other side. We will take steps as necessary,” Ackson stated.

She also noted that a Nigerian delegate had requested to speak but was not given the floor due to time constraints. However, she reassured members that all perspectives would be considered before any decision is made.