Senator representing Kogi Central in the National Assembly, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan has declared readiness to prove her sexual harassment case against the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.
By Emma Ogbuehi
Senator representing Kogi Central in the National Assembly, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan has declared readiness to prove her sexual harassment case against the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.
She made the declaration in response to a N200 billion defamation suit filed against her by the Senate President, in Abuja, on Friday, while confirming receipt of the lawsuit.
According to her, Akpabio’s suit has given her an opportunity denied her by the Senate Ethics and Privileges Committee to prove her allegations before a court of competent jurisdiction.
In a statement, the Kogi Central Senator declared that the court case now provided the platform she has long awaited.
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She insists she will prove that she was indeed sexually harassed and that her refusal to submit to the alleged advances triggered sustained political attacks against her.
“See you in court, Godswill Akpabio,” she declared.
The Senate President had filed a ₦200 billion defamation lawsuit against Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, accusing her of publishing malicious allegations that he sexually harassed her.
According to documents from the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Akpabio is demanding extensive damages, retractions, and nationwide broadcast apologies, insisting that the senator’s claims severely injured his reputation and subjected him to public ridicule.
The suit, which included a detailed Statement of Claim and a list of witnesses, alleges that Senator Akpoti’s interviews aired on television, radio, and widely circulated online painted the Senate President as a predator who exploited his position for personal gratification.
Akpabio argues that millions of Nigerians consumed the content, creating a wave of backlash that he describes as damaging, humiliating and deeply distressing.
He is asking the court to compel the removal of all online materials containing the allegations and to order an apology broadcast across major media outlets for several consecutive days.
In her response, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan confirmed the receipt of the lawsuit on Friday, adding that she welcomes the legal battle—noting that she was previously prevented from presenting her petition to the Senate Committee on Ethics and Privileges because Senate leadership claimed a related matter was already in court. That decision, she maintained, effectively shielded Akpabio from scrutiny within the Senate.
With the court now in play, the senator said she finally has the platform she was denied. “I’m ready to prove everything,” she said in a blunt statement. She insisted she will show she was sexually harassed—and that her refusal to give in triggered “sustained political intimidation and retaliation.”
A court order issued on 6 November 2025 granted the claimant permission to serve court processes on Senator Akpoti through the Clerk of the National Assembly, following unsuccessful attempts at direct service.
