Tensions ran high on Tuesday during the hearing of a sexual harassment petition filed by Kogi Central lawmaker, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, as the members of the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Petitions engaged in a heated exchange with former Education Minister, Oby Ezekwesili.

While the senators engaged Ezekwesili in a war of words, the Independent National Electoral Commission gave the embattled Kogi lawmaker temporary respite as it faulted the petitioners for not complying with the recall guidelines.

Akpoti-Uduaghan was suspended by the Senate on March 6 following a heated disagreement with the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, over a new seating arrangement, which she alleged was designed to undermine her.

The crisis escalated when Akpoti-Uduaghan accused Akpabio on national television of punishing her for rejecting his purported sexual advances.

Subsequently, the Senate leadership suspended her for six months and ordered her security aides to withdraw.

Following this, the embattled lawmaker submitted a sexual harassment petition against Akpabio to the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Petitions, which held a hearing on Tuesday.

Signs that the proceeding at the Senate may not end well emerged when a petitioner from Kogi Central, Suberu Yakubu, his legal counsel, Abiola Akinyode and Ezekwesili, who appeared before the committee as a witness, accused the senators of bias and unfair handling of the petition filed against the Senate President by the suspended lawmaker’s constituents.

But things got to a head when the petitioner urged the Chairman of the committee, Senator Neda Imasuen, to step down over the manner he has so far handled the sexual harassment petition against Akpabio.

‘’How can the chairman serve as a judge in a case where he has already publicly taken a position? What is the need for us to present our case when a verdict has already been given before hearing us?” Yakubu queried.

He further alleged that some committee members had ties to Akpabio, which, in his view, compromised their ability to be neutral.

The statement infuriated the committee members, who berated Yakubu for attempting to dent the integrity of the panel.

The lawmakers also chided Ezekwesili for attempting to ‘’force herself into the narrative’’ under the guise of being a witness.

Heated debate in Senate

However, Ezekwesili insisted on being heard out. She said, “I asked to be put on oath as a witness. I am a citizen of Nigeria.” But she was shouted down by the lawmakers.

As the tension continued to build, the ex-minister and the lawmaker representing Ebonyi North, Senator Peter Nwebonyi, engaged in a shouting match.

“You can’t sit there as senators and be asking me not to talk,” she screamed.

Nwebonyi charged back at her, saying, “Don’t insult me. And you are even telling me to keep my mouth shut up. Who are you? You must be a fool, a fool at 70. That is what you are.

“What do you mean? You are an insult to womanhood. A fool like you can never be here. Who are you?”

After the tension was doused, the legislator representing Imo West, Senator Patrick Ndubueze, appealed for calm.

“We should stop behaving like people in the marketplace. This is the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. It is sad to hear you (petitioner) say you don’t have confidence in the Senate. What it means is that everybody here is not trustworthy.

“Yes, we are all citizens of this country. But here, you must be recognised before you speak. That is the rule. We cannot just jump to answer questions because you are a petitioner. This is a Standing Committee.”

Hearing adjourned indefinitely

However, Imasuen adjourned the hearing indefinitely following observations that both Akpabio’s wife and Akpoti-Uduaghan have a case in court.

They also noted that the suspended Kogi lawmaker was not available to defend her allegation.

Addressing journalists after the hearing, Ezekwesili described the Senate’s approach as a gross violation of the Nigerian Constitution and legal framework.

She criticised the committee’s insistence on prioritizing Senate rules over constitutional provisions, particularly in cases involving disciplinary actions and petitions.

“The Nigerian Senate keeps telling citizens they are subject to Senate Rules, even when those rules violate the Constitution. This is unacceptable in a democracy,” Ezekwesili declared.

She also referenced Akpoti-Uduaghan’s six months’ suspension by the Senate, arguing that it was carried out without due regard for constitutional provisions.

“The Senate placed its own rules above the laws of the land. Now, with this petitioner, they have done the same thing—using procedural loopholes to avoid addressing critical issues,” she said.

Ezekwesili backed the petitioner’s demand for a specially constituted independent committee to review the case, arguing that the current panel lacked the impartiality necessary to ensure fairness.

“If a petitioner says they do not believe the Senate committee will give them a fair hearing due to clear bias, it is only just that an independent body reviews the matter,” she added.

She also warned that the Senate’s actions could set a dangerous precedent, where internal rules override the Constitution.

“The Senate must respect the Constitution. Otherwise, we risk turning our democracy into a system where powerful individuals manipulate processes to silence opposition and suppress justice,” she noted.

INEC faults petitioners

Meanwhile, the Independent National Electoral Commission has raised concerns over the petition for the recall of Akpoti-Uduaghan, noting that the sponsors failed to comply with the recall guidelines.

Some members of the Kogi central constituency had submitted a petition to the INEC requesting Akpoti-Uduaghan’s recall following the six-month suspension slammed on her for misconduct by the Senate.

The petition was reportedly signed by about 250,000 constituents.

Speaking on Monday, Charity Omole, a representative of the constituents, said they submitted the petition because the constituency cannot afford not to have a representative in the Senate.

In order to recall a federal lawmaker, a petition must be submitted to the commission’s chairman, signed by more than 50 percent of the registered voters in the constituency, followed by a verification and then a referendum.

The law provides that a recall process must be concluded within 90 days from the date of receipt of the petition.

But the electoral commission in a Tuesday statement by the National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun, pointed out that the petitioners failed to provide the necessary contact information, such as their addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses, as required under the Commission’s Regulations and Guidelines for Recall 2024.

It said the petition, which includes six bags of documents that are said to contain signatures from more than half of the 474,554 registered voters in the district, did not comply with the guidelines.

The petition, presented on behalf of the constituents by one Charity Ijese and received by INEC’s Secretary, Rose Oriaran-Anthony, on Monday, was said to be lacking clear contact details for the representatives, with only the phone number of the lead petitioner provided.

Also, INEC noted that the petition represents voters from five local government areas—Adavi, Ajaokuta, Ogori/Magongo, Okehi, and Okene – covering 902 polling units across 57 registration areas.

However, the commission criticised the petitioners for providing a vague address—simply listing “Okene, Kogi State”—which does not meet the standards outlined in its regulations.

The statement read in part, “The Commission held its regular weekly meeting today, Tuesday 25th March 2025. Among other issues, the meeting discussed the petition for the recall of the Senator representing Kogi Central Senatorial District.

“The process of recall is enshrined in the 1999 Constitution, the Electoral Act 2022 as well as the Commission’s detailed Regulations and Guidelines for Recall 2024, available on our website. All petitions will be treated in strict compliance with the legal framework.

“The petition from Kogi Central Senatorial District was accompanied by six bags of documents said to be signatures collected from over half of the 474,554 registered voters spread across 902 Polling Units in 57 Registration Areas (Wards) in the five Local Government Areas of Adavi, Ajaokuta, Ogori/Magongo, Okehi and Okene.

“The commission’s immediate observation is that the representatives of the petitioners did not provide their contact address, telephone number(s) and e-mail address(es) in the covering letter forwarding the petition through which they can be contacted as provided in Clause 1(f) of our Regulations and Guidelines.

“The address given is “Okene, Kogi State”, which is not a definite location for contacting the petitioners. Only the telephone number of “the lead petitioner” is provided as against the numbers of all the other representatives of the petitioners.”

Olumekun further explained, “The commission wishes to reiterate that the recall of a legislator is the prerogative of registered voters in a constituency who sign a petition indicating loss of confidence in the legislator representing them.

“Once the petition meets the requirements of submission, as contained in our regulations, the commission shall commence the verification of the signatures in each polling unit in an open process restricted to registered voters that signed the petition only.

“The petitioners and the member whose recall is sought shall be at liberty to nominate agents to observe the verification, while interested observers and the media will also be accredited. At each polling unit, signatories to the petition shall be verified using the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System.”

INEC assured the public that the recall process would proceed in accordance with the law, provided the petitioners fulfilled all the necessary guidelines.

However, in the absence of complete contact information, the body said it was exploring alternative methods to notify the petition representatives.

“Consequently, if the petitioners fully comply with the requirements of Clause 1(f) of the Regulations and Guidelines regarding the submission of their petition, the commission will announce the next steps in line with the extant laws, regulations and guidelines.

“In the absence of a definite contact address, the Commission is making efforts to use other means to notify the representatives of the petitioners of the situation.

“The commission reassures the public that it will be guided by the legal framework for recall. The public should, therefore, discountenance any speculations and insinuations in the social media,” the statement further said.

The petition, titled, ‘Constituents’ Petition for the Recall of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan on Grounds of Loss of Confidence,’ called for her removal due to accusations of gross misconduct, abuse of office and a pattern of deceit.

PDP blames Akpabio for Akpoti-Uduaghan’s travail

Reacting to the recall plot, the Peoples Democratic Party accused Akpabio of allegedly sponsoring the recall against Akpoti-Uduaghan.

The PDP Deputy National Youth Leader, Timothy Osadolor, called on the Senate President to step down.

When asked if the party suspected Akpabio of masterminding the recall, Osadolor said he does not doubt it.

He stated, “I think we joke too much in this country, and we focus too much on non-issues, especially among our leaders. I believe the money that Senator Akpabio is spending to embarrass Natasha could be better used to support the poor and hungry in his constituency—or better still, spent on other parts of Nigeria.

“This is a country where voter turnout on election day is often less than 50 per cent of eligible voters. So, we are seeing numbers of supposed voters wanting to recall Natasha.

‘’Where did they get them? Did they get them from Lagos, Abuja, or other parts of the country? If they were not sponsored, where did they get them?’’

Speaking further, he noted, “We know what our problem is – lack of governance. And this is what I define as irresponsible leadership in government. With due respect to Senator Akpabio, he is not different for exhibiting such behaviour.

‘’Because a woman has accused you of moral misconduct, I would have expected that he will step down and allow for a thorough investigation, rather than victimizing and suppressing her rights.

“The right thing to do is to step aside and allow for thorough investigation. Instead, Akpabio and his friends are mobilising some people against her. This will not make the matter go away.”

A Kogi Central constituent, Abdrahman Badamasuyi, who is a PDP stalwart, claimed the petition did not represent the will of the people.

‘’It (recall petition) is a doctored document that cannot stand the test of time,’’ Badamasuyi said.

Another constituent, who declined to be named, insisted the recall process was fraudulent.

‘’The signatures must have been forged, that is why they could not provide the addresses of those they claimed to have signed the document,” he argued.

PUNCH