THE Senate Committee on Ethics, Code of Conduct, and Public Petitions has dismissed Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan’s sexual harassment and abuse of office petition against Senate President Godswill Akpabio, declaring it “dead on arrival”.
The committee on Wednesday cited procedural violations and legal constraints
During the probe session, the Chairman of the Committee, Senator Neda Imasuen, cited Order 40 of the Senate Standing Orders, explaining that Akpoti-Uduaghan signed the petition herself rather than having it endorsed by another individual, thereby rendering it procedurally invalid.
Additionally, he noted that the matters raised in the petition were already before the court, making them sub judice and beyond the Senate’s jurisdiction.
“The petition that she (Natasha) presented today is actually dead on arrival; it runs contrary to Order 40, Subsection 4, which states that no senator may present to the Senate a petition signed by him or herself. Since that petition was signed by her, it will not be entertained by this committee,” he said.
Despite the committee’s scheduled sitting, Akpoti-Uduaghan failed to appear before the probe panel.
The session, which was scheduled for 2 pm, did not commence until 2:58 pm when the committee’s chairman arrived after waiting for both Akpoti-Uduaghan and the Senate spokesman, Yemi Adaramodu.
While Adaramodu eventually arrived at 2:50 pm, Akpoti-Uduaghan was absent from the hearing.
The Nigerian Senate earlier on Wednesday received a petition from the Kogi Senator, accusing Akpabio of sexual harassment.
The allegation was raised during the Wednesday plenary, but Akpabio swiftly denied the claims, dismissing them as baseless.
“At no time did I ever harass any woman. I was raised very well by my late single mother, and I have always upheld respect for women. I was even awarded the most gender-friendly governor in Nigeria,” Akpabio stated.
