‘Silence Is Not Surrender’: Natasha Fires Back at Akpabio, Agbakoba Over Harassment Allegation

In a blistering public rejoinder, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan has reaffirmed her sexual harassment allegations against Senate President Godswill Akpabio, while sharply criticizing his legal team—led by Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Dr. Olisa Agbakoba—for using media commentary to distort the course of ongoing judicial proceedings.
The strongly worded response, dated April 30 and addressed to Dr. Agbakoba, is coming after televised remarks the senior lawyer made on Channels TV’s Politics Today on April 15 and again on April 29, where he accused Senator Natasha of ignoring two letters dated April 14 and 22 that demanded a retraction of her claims.
“No such letters have ever been served upon me by post, courier, or personal delivery,” the senator clarified. She added that her previous silence was out of “studious restraint,” guided by legal advice and in deference to the principle of lis pendens—the doctrine that discourages public commentary on matters already before the courts.
Senator Natasha is the plaintiff in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/384/2025, where she is challenging her suspension from the Senate on grounds of denial of fair hearing. Separately, she is the defendant in Suit No. CV/816/2025, filed by Unoma Akpabio, wife of the Senate President, who is seeking ₦250 billion in damages for alleged defamation arising from the harassment claims.
The senator denounced what she described as a contradictory legal strategy by the Senate President—invoking the sub judice rule to block a Senate inquiry into her complaint, only to then launch a media campaign pressuring her to provide evidence publicly.
“A litigant may not approbate in the courts and reprobate in the press,” she wrote. “The rule against parallel adjudication safeguards the integrity of judicial proceedings.”
Senator Natasha also accused Senator Akpabio of violating fundamental principles of natural justice by presiding over the Senate plenary that led to her six-month suspension, despite a valid court order acknowledged by the Senate committee at the time.
“These actions offend two cardinal rules: nemo judex in causa sua (no one should be a judge in their own case), and audi alteram partem (the right to a fair hearing),” she wrote. “It is troubling that a Life Bencher and former NBA President would not caution his client against such infractions.”
Responding to claims that her previous public interactions with Senator Akpabio—such as photos taken during the March 2024 Inter-Parliamentary Union session—undermine her allegations, Senator Natasha dismissed such suggestions as tone-deaf.
“In a male-dominated legislature where only three women serve among 109 senators, the pressure to maintain outward civility is immense,” she explained. “That pressure should never be mistaken for complicity or consent.”
She urged Dr. Agbakoba to offer more balanced legal counsel to his client, noting the wider democratic and gender-related implications of her suspension.
“The unlawful deprivation of Kogi Central’s representation beyond the statutory limit is not only unjust—it is constitutionally condemnable,” she said, citing precedents from superior courts.A
Senator Natasha concluded by reaffirming the validity of her complaint filed on February 28 and reserving the right to seek redress through both national and international legal channels. She also directed that any future communications be routed through her legal representatives.