Abuja
Natasha Reveals: Akpabio Is Angry Because Of My Access To Tinubu
Natasha Reveals: Akpabio Is Angry Because Of My Access To Tinubu
Natasha reveals: Akpabio is angry because of my access to Tinubu. Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central has revealed that her suspension from the national assembly was based on a pre-written script and driven by political motives.
Speaking during an interview with Adeola Fayehun, a US-based Nigerian journalist, Akpoti-Uduaghan said the March 6 incident was not spontaneous, but part of a “calculated plan”.
She said the claim that she disrupted proceedings over her seat was false.
“The impression being circulated is that I caused a scene over my seat. That is false,” she said.
“I raised a matter of privilege under chapter 4, Item 9b of the senate rules — a provision that demands immediate attention.
“But the senate president cut me off, ordered the sergeant-at-arms to remove me, and directed the clerk to begin preparing my suspension letter. That wasn’t a reaction; it was a pre-written script.”
She accused Godswill Akpabio, the senate president, of abusing his office by unilaterally ordering her removal from the chamber.
“He has no authority to unilaterally suspend any senator on the floor. The way he handled it — like I was a staff member in his living room — was not only unlawful but also degrading,” she said.
“My reaction was in response to a decision he had clearly already made.”
Akpoti-Uduaghan said her suspension followed a formal petition she submitted against the senate leadership the day before.
“I believe my suspension was retaliatory. The ethics report they cited was merely a smokescreen. I had submitted allegations that shook the system, and the next day, I was silenced,” she said.
The lawmaker also addressed an allegation by Sandra Duru, who claimed the senator was trying to bring down the government led by someone from the south-west.
Akpoti-Uduaghan denied the allegation and said she is not driven by ethnic sentiments.
“People who know me know that I am not a tribalist. I respect and appreciate every tribe in Nigeria, every ethnicity,” she said.
“I am half Nigerian and half Ukrainian — who am I to talk about tribe when I am actually one part of the other world? That is not my nature; that is not my language.”
She alleged that Duru’s remarks were sponsored by political interests threatened by her wide support.
“If anybody said that, it’s probably her team, the people who have sponsored her,” she said.
“Her sponsors are the ones who have probably put those words to her because they knew that I had enjoyed a lot of support from Nigerians — not just in Kogi state, but across the country and even in the diaspora.”
Akpoti-Uduaghan claimed her cordial relationship with President Bola Tinubu angered the senate president.
“The senate president, Godswill Akpabio, also knows that I enjoyed a good relationship with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” she said.
“I have not said it in the open before, but I am saying it now, and that actually annoyed him because there was a time when the senate president told my husband, ‘Are you aware that your wife goes to see the President?’ and my husband told him he was aware.
“Whenever I have critical issues to raise — like before I brought up the issue of probing Ajaokuta — I did meet with Mr President to make sure he knew the nature of it, and he was okay with it. For other matters too, I have met him in person.
“So, I do not have a hostile relationship with the president, even though I am in the opposition. I keep saying, the good people of Kogi central voted me as a senator to work, not to antagonise or create enmity.
Akpabio, Senator Natasha
“I want the people to know my issue is with the senate president — not the entire senate, the Nigerian people, the institutions, or the presidency.”
Akpoti-Uduaghan was suspended from the senate for alleged gross misconduct following her seating arrangement altercation with Akpabio.
The lawmaker said she believed her suspension was illegal, unjust and a way of silencing her.
She also rejected the senate’s position that she was not suspended over her s3xual harassment claim against Akpabio.
Wike Orders ‘Heightened’ Security In FCT, Reactivates ‘Operation Sweep’
Wike orders ‘heightened’ security in FCT, reactivates ‘operation sweep’. Nyesom Wike, minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has directed security agencies to intensify surveillance and strengthen security operations across Abuja, the nation’s capital, as part of renewed efforts to curb criminal activities in the territory.
Speaking on Tuesday at the formal resumption of “Operation Sweep”, Miller Dantawaye, FCT commissioner of police, said the minister had provided the logistics and operational support required for the exercise.
Dantawaye said the operation is being carried out by a joint security team comprising the military, the police, the Department of State Services (DSS) and other agencies already deployed across strategic locations in the capital city.
The police commissioner said the team has been tasked with working more aggressively to prevent kidnappings, banditry and other crimes, especially as the festive season draws nearer.
He added that service chiefs and the inspector-general of police (IGP) have also granted full approval for the renewed operation.
“The FCT minister, His Excellency Nyesom Wike, has given complete support, especially in terms of logistics for this operation,” Dantawaye said.
“By the time we leave here today, the funds for fuelling and servicing of vehicles, as well as allowances for personnel, will have dropped into an account we can access.”
Operation Sweep
Dantawaye also said part of the renewed operation will focus on profiling individuals loitering around the city under the guise of begging, noting that some of them have been found to engage in criminal activities.
“We know that amongst the people who claim to be beggars, some are not exactly beggars. Most come with criminal intent,” he said.
“We are going to profile them and take off the streets those who are criminally minded, even if they claim to be beggars.”
He added that the police will work with relevant agencies, including the Abuja environmental protection board (AEPB), to determine the appropriate legal steps to manage street begging and ensure overall safety in the city.
Army Bosses To Wike: “The Soldier’s Reaction Is The Courage Of A Disciplined Soldier”
Army Bosses to Wike: “The Soldier’s reaction is the courage of a disciplined soldier”. Here is the view of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) about the stand-off between Wike and Yerima in Abuja.
“Every soldier has an element of madness…
For while the right thinking man withdraws from danger, a soldier charges towards it
GENERAL OO OLUYEDE OFR
CHIEF OF DEFENCE STAFF”.
The Nigerian Defence Academy does not produce docile officers. The officer’s response reflects admirable composure and emotional intelligence-qualities that lie at the heart of military leadership training.
His ability to remain calm, firm, and respectful under verbal provocation demonstrates discipline and professionalism.
Army Bosses To Wike
Nevertheless, it is both unfortunate and inappropriate for a federal minister to use such language toward a serving officer of the Armed Forces.
Public officials should model civility and restraint, especially when addressing those in uniform who embody national service and sacrifice”.
Notwithstanding, the case is subject to my scrutiny.
Orji Kalu Backs Trump, Says “Nigerian Christians Subjected To ‘Mass Slaughter’ By Jihadists”
Orji Kalu backs Trump, says “Nigerian Christians subjected to ‘mass slaughter’ by Jihadists”. Senator Orji Kalu has backed American President Donald Trump’s allegation that Christians in Nigeria are being targeted for massacre by “Jihadists”.
Senator Orji Kalu has backed American President Donald Trump’s allegation that Christians in Nigeria are being targeted for massacre by “Jihadists”.
Mr Kalu made this statement when asked on Tuesday at the National Assembly about his take on Mr Trump’s recent comments on alleged Christian genocide in the country.
“What Donald Trump said, “is it a lie? It is not a lie because Donald Trump said the Truth,” replied Mr Kalu.
In a social media post in October, Mr Trump said, “Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria. Thousands of Christians are being killed. Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter. I am hereby making Nigeria a ‘COUNTRY OF PARTICULAR CONCERN’ — But that is the least of it.”
The senator noted, however, that “Nigerians are being killed, whether they are Christians or Muslims”.
“If they (terrorists) kill in Plateau, those they kill are Christians. If they go to Benue, the majority of people they’ll kill are Christians,” explained the former Abia governor. “If they go to Zamfara, the people they will kill in the mosque are Muslims. These people are jihadists. These people just want to destroy Nigeria. We should blacklist them without pity so that they will be smoked out.”
Mr Kalu added, “Before President Trump says a word, the American intelligence community must have found out where these terrorists are located. You can see that the Nigerian Air Force is already acting, possibly using information shared by the U.S. to bomb terrorist hideouts. That’s how it should be.”
Orji Kalu Says
Following up on his initial post, the U.S. president said, “If the Nigerian government continues to allow the k1lling of Christians, the U.S.A. will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities.
“I am hereby instructing our Department of War to prepare for possible action. If we attack, it will be fast, vicious, and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our CHERISHED Christians! WARNING: THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT BETTER MOVE FAST!”
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