THE Office of the Senate President has dismissed reports circulating on social media suggesting that Senate President Godswill Akpabio is battling health challenges, describing the claims as false, baseless, and deliberately misleading.
Kenny Okolugbo, Consultant on Communications and Strategy to the Senate President, addressed the rumours during an interview on Channels Television’s Morning Brief on Thursday, monitored by News Point Nigeria.
According to Okolugbo, there is no truth to claims that Akpabio collapsed or was flown abroad for medical treatment, stressing that the Senate President remains in good health and is fully engaged in his official responsibilities.
“The Senate President is very healthy. You saw him; he’s been attending sessions, and that answers the question,” Okolugbo said.
He noted that Akpabio has continued to preside over Senate activities and participate in legislative engagements, contradicting allegations that he had been incapacitated or absent due to illness.
Okolugbo likened the situation to previous false reports targeting senior public officials, citing a recent example involving the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
“Even Minister Wike was affected by similar rumours. One day they said he was in a coma or had suffered a stroke, and the next day he was commissioning projects and appeared on a live programme,” he added.
The aide warned that the spread of unverified information on social media poses a serious threat to public discourse and national stability, urging stricter regulation and greater responsibility among online publishers.
“We must regulate social media. Everybody’s a publisher online, but they don’t seem to understand that the law prohibits sharing information you are not sure of,” Okolugbo said.
The denial followed a report published earlier in the week by an online platform, SaharaReporters, which claimed that Akpabio had collapsed and was flown to London aboard a private jet for medical treatment.
The report further alleged that his purported condition prevented him from attending official engagements, including the interactive session on the Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper held on Wednesday.
However, Okolugbo maintained that the claims were entirely false and urged Nigerians to rely on verified information from credible sources.
As of press time, the Senate Presidency had not issued a separate formal statement, but officials insist that Akpabio remains active, healthy, and fully in charge of Senate affairs.