Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan on Tuesday reported the Nigerian Senate President, Godswill Akpabio and her illegal suspension during the Women in Parliament session held at the Inter-Parliamentary Union Meeting (IPU) at the United Nations in New York.
The lawmaker is asking for justice and intervention of the global democratic institutions over what she described as injustice meted out to her, as she was suspended from the Senate illegally.
She expressed concerns about her safety, alleging that powerful figures in Nigeria might attempt to detain her in New York for speaking out.
“I was suspended illegally because I submitted a petition for sexual harassment against the President of the Nigerian Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio. I thought that by submitting the petition, he would recues himself and both of us would submit ourselves to the Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petition for a fair, transparent investigation. But unfortunately, I was silenced and I was suspended”.
“That means I’m here illegally, but I have no other place to go but to come here and speak to you because this is a bigger picture. This is a bigger picture. It depicts the crisis of women’s political representation. My suspension is not just about me. It’s about the systemic exclusion of women from political leadership in Nigeria”.
Last week, the Senate suspended the lawmaker in a move that has continued to generate debates across the country. The Senate suspended the lawmaker for violation of the Senate’s rules days after she submitted a petition against Akpabio for sexual assault and other accusations claims the Senate President refuted.
Senator Natasha vowed to continue the fight against injustice. But in the wake of the suspension, Akpabio denied the accusations and maintained he has never assaulted women.
