Defamation: Akpabio slams Natasha with fresh N200bn lawsuit

Senate President Godswil Akpabio and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan

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Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, has slammed a fresh N200 billion defamation lawsuit on Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.

Akpoti-Uduaghan representing Kogi Central disclosed this in a Facebook post on Friday where she attached the notice of the suit with number: FCT/HC/CV/3356/2025 before Justice U. P. Kekemeke.

She said the development will offer her an opportunity to now present her account before the Senate Committee on Ethics and Privileges which previously declined to hear her complaint.

Akpabio, in a suit before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, accused the Kogi Central senator of making “false, malicious, and injurious” claims that portrayed him as a “sexual predator” and exposed him to “public hatred, contempt, and ridicule.”

The former Akwa Ibom State governor is seeking monetary damages, public retractions, and nationwide broadcast apologies.

The court had, on November 6, granted an order for substituted service after bailiffs failed to serve Akpoti-Uduaghan directly.

The documents were subsequently routed through the Clerk of the National Assembly.

Confirming receipt of the suit, Akpoti-Uduaghan said she is ready for a full trial, insisting the case now gives her the platform she was allegedly denied in the Senate.

Posting on Facebook and Instagram, she wrote, “I’m in receipt of the newly instituted N200bn suit against me by Senator Godswill Akpabio claiming defamation on sexual harassment.

“Now, I am glad that Akpabio has brought this up because the Senate Committee on Ethics and Privileges failed to grant me an audience on this issue, relying on the fact that Godswill Akpabio’s wife had instituted a defamatory case against me. Therefore they couldn’t attend to a matter already in court.

“Albeit, I couldn’t proceed to court because by senate rules, I must still present my case before the Ethics committee (same committee that recommended my illegal suspension).

“Alas, I now have a chance to prove how I was sexually harassed and how my refusal to give in to his demands unleashed a series of unprovoked and unprecedented attacks on my person. See you in court Godswill Akpabio.”

Her reaction immediately reignited debate around the escalating tensions in the 10th Senate, with observers describing the lawsuit as one of the most significant political face-offs between a Senate President and a sitting colleague in recent memory.

The PUNCH reported that Akpoti-Uduaghan was suspended for six months in March 2025 after protesting the relocation of her seat during plenary.

She repeatedly accused Akpabio of targeting her and once labelled him a “dictator.”

Although her suspension expired in September, she could not resume immediately due to legal constraints and what she described as internal pushback from Senate leadership.

Her sealed office was eventually reopened by officials of the Sergeant-at-Arms.

Returning defiantly, she maintained she had “no apology to tender,” insisting attempts were being made to stifle dissent within the chamber.

With both lawmakers now preparing for a legal showdown, the case has again started generating intense public attention.

The PUNCH journalist, Adebayo, has over 20 years of experience covering politics, health, metro, entertainment and properties

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