Natasha brands Nigerian Senate as ‘cult group’

The suspended Kogi Central lawmaker, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has likened the Nigerian Senate to a cult.

She claimed that lawmakers avoid expressing dissenting views for fear of retaliation.

In an interview with the BBC, Akpoti-Uduaghan stated that her six-month suspension for alleged gross misconduct was merely a tactic to silence her.

She argued that the Senate discourages independent opinions, creating an environment where lawmakers conform rather than challenge decisions.

“I am being victimised. My suspension is a means of silencing me,” she said.

“It was episode after episode, moment after moment. We were at his country home. He was taking me around his house. My husband was walking behind us. He held my hand.

“He then squeezed my hands in a very suggestive way. We women, we know what it means when a man squeezes our hands in a suggestive way.

“And he went, ‘now that you’re in the Senate, I’ll make an opportunity for us to come here and have a good moment’, you know, along that line.”

Recall that Akpoti-Uduaghan had accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of sexually harassing her after a faceoff during plenary last month.

On March 6, she was issued a six-month suspension from the Senate for “gross misconduct” after failing to appear before the Ethics and Privilege committee.

When asked if Akpabio ever made any advances towards her in the chamber or the senate, she said, “There was a time when I rushed to work forgetting to wear my ring, there were about five senators there. He said, ‘Oh Natasha, you are not wearing your ring. Is this an invitation to treat?’ You know, statements like this.”

Reacting to the interview, the Senate’s Deputy Chief Whip, Onyekachi Nwaebonyi, told the BBC that Akpabio never made sexual advances or inappropriate comments toward Akpoti-Uduaghan.

Nwaebonyi also rejected the Kogi Central Senator’s claim that the senate was trying to silence her.

“Senator Natasha’s legislative activities show this claim is not true,” he said.