The suspended Kogi Central Senator, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, on Sunday, mocked the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, with a satirical apology letter posted on her official Facebook page.
In the letter, Akpoti-Uduaghan sarcastically apologised for her “crime of maintaining dignity and self-respect” in the Senate.
She said success in the Senate under Akpabio’s leadership seemed to depend not on merit, but on compliance with personal demands.
“It is with the deepest sarcasm and utmost theatrical regret that I tender this apology for the grievous crime of possessing dignity and self-respect in your most exalted presence.
“I have reflected extensively on my unforgivable failure to recognize that legislative success in certain quarters is apparently not earned through merit, but through the ancient art of compliance — of the very personal kind,” she said.
Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan alleged that her refusal to give in to inappropriate sexual advances from Akpabio contributed to her suspension.
She suggested that rejecting such advances was treated as a violation of unwritten rules that favour certain men’s entitlement.
“How remiss of me not to understand that my refusal to indulge your… “requests” was not merely a personal choice, but a constitutional violation of the unwritten laws of certain men’s entitlement.
“Truly, I must apologize for prioritizing competence over capitulation, vision over vanity, and the people’s mandate over private dinners behind closed doors.
“I now realise the catastrophic consequences of my actions: legislation delayed, tempers flared, and the tragic bruising of egos so large they require their own postcodes. For this disruption to the natural order of “quid pro quo,” I bow my head in fictional shame.
“Please find it in your magnanimous heart — somewhere buried deep beneath layers of entitlement — to forgive this stubborn woman who mistakenly believed that her seat in the Senate was earned through elections, not erections,” she stated.
It would be recalled that on March 6, the Senate voted to suspend Akpoti-Uduaghan for six months following the ethics committee’s recommendations.
The decision was based on the ethics committee’s report which indicted her for alleged misconduct during a plenary session on Feb. 20 and her refusal to adhere to the chamber’s sitting arrangement.
The Senate also imposed several penalties on her, including the withdrawal of all her security aides and the closure of her office within the National Assembly.
Also all Senate properties in her possession were to be handed over to the Clerk to the National Assembly. At the same time, she was also prohibited from entering the National Assembly premises during the suspension period.
Her salary and allowances were also suspended for the duration of the suspension, just as she was banned from presenting herself as a senator, both locally and internationally.
However, the Senate said the suspension could be lifted if Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan submits a written apology, which the leadership may consider before the full six-month period expires.
It would also be recalled that on March 11, Akpoti-Uduaghan took her case to the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), seeking international intervention in her suspension from the Senate.
She addressed delegates at an IPU meeting held at the United Nations headquarters in New York, during which she also raised allegations of sexual harassment against Akpabio.
The Kogi senator described her suspension from the Senate as unlawful and a deliberate attempt to silence her for speaking out against alleged misconduct in the Nigerian upper legislative chamber.
Responding, the President of the IPU, Tulia Ackson, said the global parliamentary organisation would take necessary steps on the cases as reported by the senator, but it would also provide an opportunity for the Nigerian Senate to present its side of the story before taking any action.
A Nigerian delegate at the IPU meeting on that day, Kafilat Ogbara, however held a press briefing a day after, during which she urged the National Assembly to ensure a fair and transparent investigation into the issue.
Mrs Ogbara, who chairs the House Committee on Women Affairs and Social Development, also read a letter from the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, explaining that Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension was due to her alleged misconduct during the plenary and violations of Senate Standing Rules, and not in connection with the sexual harassment claims against Akpabio.
Since then, the IPU has yet to make comment on the issue and Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension remains.
Meanwhile, Nigeria launches probe into her participation at the IPU meeting as Akpoti-Uduaghan’s attendance at the IPU meeting, however, triggered a government investigation.
It was reported that Nigeria’s internal and external intelligence agencies launched a probe into how she gained access to the meeting without official nomination.
Nigeria believes Akpoti-Uduaghan did not follow the required diplomatic protocols before gaining access to the IPU meeting on March 11 where she addressed her suspension from the Nigerian Senate, alleging that it was politically motivated to silence her for speaking out against misconduct in the legislative chamber.
Meanwhile, Akpoti-Uduaghan in an interview with newsmen explained that she registered for the meeting online as a senator and secured her accreditation because she was already on the IPU’s mailing list as a past attendee.