Nigeria Newspapers Online

Senator representing Kogi central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, on Monday tendered a sexual harassment petition against Senate President Godswill Akpabio on the floor of the upper legislative chamber.

This is coming few days are Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, said the Senate cannot probe Akpabio5 without any petition to that effect.

Natasha who relied on order 40 of the senate rules, said she had made some comments on Arise TV bordering on alleged sexual harassment by Akpabio.

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She said she had decided to table the same petition before the senate.

The senate president who presided thereafter asked the Kogi central senator to proceed with the submission of the petition.

Akpabio thereafter referred the petition to the committee on code of conduct, ethics and public petitions.

He said the committee should “revert to the senate as soon as practicable”.

At this point, there was drama afterwards when the Chief Whip, Mohammed Tahir Monguno, clashed with Natasha.

Monguno, who raised an objection against the submission of the petition, argued that the senate cannot entertain it because the case is subjudice.

Quoting order 40, rule 7, the Chief Whip said “senate should not receive or deliberate on any matter to which actions are pending in the court of law”.

The position was rejected by Natasha who argued that he had got the sequence of events wrong.

“This matter is not in court. The matter in court is a defamation case against the senate president’s special assistant on social media, Patrick Mfon, who accused me of dressing indecently to the senate,” the Kogi lawmaker said.

But the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, supported the Monguno and debated against the submission of the petition.

According to him, “We cannot relax our rules. This petition cannot stand. It is in court. It is defective. There is no way we can accept this petition,” Bamidele hollered.

He subsequently moved that the senate go into a closed session.

A brief rowdy session ensued before calm was restored.

The senate thereafter proceeded with the business of the day, with Akpoti-Uduaghan staging a walkout.