Reports indicate that Senate President Godswill Akpabio may step down next week to face the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions over allegations of sexual harassment leveled against him by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.
Sources suggest that the committee is expected to officially clear Akpabio of the allegations and subsequently recommend an indefinite suspension for Senator Natasha, who is already serving a six-month suspension.
Insiders reveal that both Akpabio and Natasha will appear before the committee to formally validate the Senate President’s exoneration. However, the plan allegedly includes extending Natasha’s suspension for the remainder of her tenure.
Additionally, Senator Ireti Kingibe’s recent endorsement of the investigation and Senator Onyekachi Nweboyin’s remarks on Channels TV are believed to be part of a broader strategy to justify Natasha’s indefinite suspension.
A high-level source disclosed: “The current plan is to suspend Senator Natasha until the end of her tenure. The panel’s report is already being drafted, and the committee meeting will simply serve as a formality. Akpabio will step down briefly for the investigation, after which the panel will clear him and move to suspend Natasha until 2027.”
This development follows Senator Natasha’s petition to the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) against Akpabio.
The Kogi Central senator, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), alleged that Akpabio sexually harassed her during a visit to his residence in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, in December 2023. She claims he held her hand, led her around his house, and made inappropriate advances—even in the presence of her husband.
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