9th May, 2025
Senate President Godswill Akpabio has declared that he will not step down over sexual harassment allegations levelled against him by suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, describing the claims as “false” and an attempt to derail the Senate’s leadership.
Speaking on the floor of the Senate on Thursday, Akpabio responded directly to recent calls for him to vacate office, maintaining that stepping aside would amount to conceding to injustice.
“I’m not one of those people who will step down over a false allegation,” Akpabio said. “When it’s eventually proven false, they just move on as if nothing happened. I won’t be a victim of that.”
Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan had in March alleged that Akpabio sexually harassed her in 2023 and urged him to allow an independent investigation by the Senate Committee on Ethics, Code of Conduct, and Public Petitions by stepping aside.
The issue resurfaced after Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, while praising the legislative achievements of the 10th Senate, decried what he called a coordinated campaign of misinformation and unfounded attacks on the institution and its leadership.
Bamidele defended Akpabio, insisting the Senate would not be distracted by politically motivated claims. “At whatever level of allegation against any one of us, we will always ask for evidence and act in the overriding public interest,” he said.
In a separate matter during plenary, Akpabio also took a swipe at the Minister of Defence, Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, for criticising the Senate’s planned national security summit. The minister had dismissed the summit as unnecessary, arguing that military operations take precedence.
Akpabio responded that such comments should not be made in public. “If the defence ministry has concerns about our resolutions, it should reach out through proper legislative channels, not speak in the market square,” he said. “Anything short of that amounts to executive-legislative brouhaha.”
Despite mounting pressure and public scrutiny, Akpabio’s remarks show his resolve to retain his position and maintain control of the Senate’s agenda. The chamber, according to Bamidele, remains committed to national development, constitutional review, and fair governance without succumbing to sensationalism.
