Akpoti-Uduaghan To Agbakoba: Only The Courts Can Assess Evidence — I’ll Pursue Sexual Harassment Case To Its Conclusion
The Senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has reaffirmed her commitment to pursue the sexual harassment suit filed against the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, to its logical conclusion in court.
In a letter dated April 30, 2025, addressed to Akpabio’s counsel, Olisa Agbakoba, SAN, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan maintained that her petition accurately reflects the events complained of. She stated that she would refrain from making further public comments on the matter, out of respect for the court’s exclusive authority to adjudicate the issue.
She criticized Agbakoba for allegedly demanding that she substantiate her allegations outside the legal pleadings already filed before the High Court of the FCT in a defamation and harassment suit filed by Akpabio’s wife, Unoma, in Suit No. CV/816/25.
“The assessment of evidence belongs to the courts alone. The nature of your demand for evidence in this manner, at the instance of your client, reflects a broader misconception of what truly constitutes sexual harassment, as defined in several global protocols,” she wrote.
“It underscores a narrow view of this global menace. In my respectful opinion, this is yet another attempt by your client to play to the gallery and sideline the seriousness of the matter.”
Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan emphasized that should further particulars be required, they would be disclosed in the ordinary course of proceedings, subject to the direction of the court.
“Any attempt to circumvent that regulated process risks subverting the very rule-of-law values you have long championed,” she added.
She also took issue with what she described as a media campaign allegedly orchestrated by Akpabio, through Agbakoba, demanding that she provide proof of her claims outside the courtroom, despite his prior refusal to allow the Senate to investigate the matter due to his privileged position.
“The principle is elementary: a litigant may not approbate in court and reprobate in the press. The rule against parallel adjudication protects the integrity of judicial proceedings, ensures fairness, and upholds the dignity of all arms of government,” she stated.
Addressing a December 9, 2023 social media post where she acknowledged the Senate President’s presence at a public event, and referencing photographs from the Inter-Parliamentary Union Session in Geneva (March 24–25, 2024), she clarified that customary civil interaction should not be misinterpreted as a denial of misconduct.
“To equate outward civility with the absence of misconduct is to trivialize the gravity of sexual harassment, particularly when it occurs in a workplace context involving a power imbalance,” she argued.
Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan noted that she had deliberately refrained from responding publicly to Agbakoba’s purported letters, in line with legal advice and in deference to the doctrine of lis pendens. She added that she did not receive any earlier correspondence from Agbakoba.
“Two parallel suits are currently pending before competent courts. Suit No. CV/816/25 (Unoma Godswill Akpabio v. Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan) at the High Court of the FCT, in which ₦250 billion in damages and injunctive reliefs are being sought on grounds of defamation and harassment; and Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/384/2025 (Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan v. Clerk of the National Assembly & Ors) at the Federal High Court, Abuja, challenging my referral to the ethics committee, my suspension from the Senate, and the withdrawal of my entitlements—all allegedly without a fair hearing,” she explained.
She reiterated that while Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/384/2025 is unrelated to her harassment allegations, Suit No. CV/816/2025 directly concerns the claims she made and should not be litigated in the media.
Meanwhile, Olisa Agbakoba had earlier addressed a second letter to Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan, urging her to retract what he described as “clearly false and unsubstantiated” allegations of sexual harassment against the Senate President.
At a press conference in Lagos, Agbakoba claimed the second letter became necessary due to her failure to clarify alleged contradictions in her claim—particularly the timeline of the incident dated December 8, 2023, and her positive social media post about Akpabio the following day, December 9.
“Instead of clarifying the contradiction, she deleted the post, which we find extremely concerning,” Agbakoba said in the letter dated April 22, 2025, signed on behalf of Olisa Agbakoba Legal (AOL) and made available to journalists.
