Senate Ethics Committee again uses technicalities, citing Akpabio’s wife’s litigation and other things
“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
“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.
“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,” – Ezekwesili.
Senators on Tuesday finally rejected the alleged sexual harassment petition filed by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan against Senate President Godswill Akpabio, citing the court case filed by his wife, Ekaette.
Nedamwen Imasuen, Senate Ethics Code of Conduct and public Petitions Committee Chairman, said the petition could not be entertained because the matter is already a subject of litigation, quoting Senate Rules.
Imasuen had previously pronounced on March 5 when Natasha first presented the petition at Senate plenary, that it was “dead on arrival” because she did not follow procedure as she signed it by herself.
As required by Senate Rules, the petition was rewritten by Zubairu Yakubu, one of Natasha’s constituents, and she re-presented it on March 6.
Akpabio chaired the Senate plenary on both occasions.
Senator Onyekachi Nwebonyi (APC, Ebonyi South) and former Education Minister Oby Ezekwesili at the session on Tuesday clashed over the handling of the allegations.
Ezekwesili, a witness, accompanied Yakubu, who appeared before the committee to defend the petition.
However, Imasuen ruled that the committee could not treat the petition, given a pending lawsuit filed on the case by Akpabio’s wife.
He cited Senate Rules, saying the practice of the Chamber is to refrain from entertaining petitions on any matter pending before a court.
Nwebonyi, Deputy Senate Chief Whip and a member of the committee, had last month insisted on Arise Television that Natasha’s allegations “never happened” because he was on the entourage who visited Akpabio’s home in Akwa Ibom in 2023 when she claimed the man made sexual advances at her.
On the Morning Show programme, Nwebonyi vehemently stood his ground and shouted at the hosts – Reuben Abati, Rufai Oseni, and Cynthia Areh.
He was visibly upset but failed to address the claim by Natasha that Akpabio escalated his advances at her in Abuja in 2024, at his home and at his Senate office – locations where Nwebonyi could not have been present when the incidents allegedly took place.
During the proceedings on Tuesday, tension rose as Nwebonyi described Ezekwesili as an “insult to womanhood” and a “hooligan”.
His remarks followed the refusal of Ezekwesili and other attendees to take an oath.
One of the Senators said if they refused to take the oath, the committee would end the meeting,g but Ezekwesili and her colleagues were adamant on not taking the oath.
Nwebonyi was infuriated and told Ezekwesili: “You are an insult to womanhood, hooligan. People like you are not supposed to be here, hooligan. You are an insult to womanhood.”
Later, Ezekwesili spoke with reporters and accused the Senate of violating the Constitution as the Senate Rule cited by the committee is not superior to the Constitution.
Her words: “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.
“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
“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.
“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.”
On the alleged bias by the Senate, Yakubu the petitioner, cited previous remarks by Imasuen that the petition was dead on arrival when it was first presented at plenary on March 5.
“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 wondered.
Yakubu expressed disappointment over the objection by the committee to his request that Natasha, who has been suspended for six months by the Senate, be allowed to testify before the committee as a principal witness.
He disclosed that Natasha has crucial documentary evidence to support her claims, lamenting that she is barred from entering the National Assembly as part of her suspension.
“In my petition, I clearly stated that my witness would present her evidence personally. But she was not allowed into the premises. How can I proceed with my case if my key witness is denied access?”
Yakubu’s counsel, Abiola Akinyode also faulted the inconsistencies in the handling of the petition by the Senate.
She said, “There is nothing in Yakubu’s petition that was not in Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan’s original petition. If the Senate dismissed her petition as ‘dead on arrival,’ then logically, Yakubu’s should also be dismissed.
“The Senate seems to operate under its own rules, separate from the Constitution. That is why they can suspend a Senator for six months without following due process.”
Akinyode also rejected the claim by the committee that it could not hear a petition on a subsisting case before a court of competent jurisdiction.
“If they knew the case was in court, they should have simply written to the petitioner stating they could not entertain it. Instead, they invited him, only to dismiss the petition on the basis that it was already in court.”
