If there’s any scandal that cuts deep into the institution of the Senate and Nigeria’s public service, it’s the latest sexual scandal levelled against Godswill Akpabio, the president of the current National Assembly.
The seriousness of the allegation is why former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, called for a “thorough investigation into the allegation” by President Bola Tinubu and the Senate.
Atiku stopped short of calling for Akpabio to step down as is the tradition in such circumstances to allow for unimpeded and transparent investigation.
A former president of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, has also called for a thorough investigation.
While there have been calls and agitation for Akpabio to resign, the embattled president of the senate has kept mum, offering no words.
Attempts to speak with him have failed as his number failed to connect. He is yet to respond to a message.
Also, his spokesperson, Eseme Eyibo, failed to answer calls and is yet to respond to messages sent by THE WHISTLER.
But THE WHISTLER gathered that the mood around Akpabio is “disappointment” and that he’s in “shame.”
In all, one wonders how many more scandals Akpabio can endure in government!
Akpabio has always had issues with women. In 2022, a weighty sexual assault allegation was made against him by former Acting Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Joy Nunieh.
Nunieh had alleged that Akpabio sought sexual gratification which pushed her to slap him. She asked, “Why did he not tell Nigerians that I slapped him in his guest house at Apo?
“I slapped him because of his plan B. Since he couldn’t get me to take that money, he thought that he could come up on me.
“Akpabio’s meetings with me were either at Apo or Meridien…Yes, I am accusing him of sexual harassment.”
According to her, Akpabio promised to make her “NDDC substantive MD.”
It’s the same tactics Senator Natasha has accused Akpabio of, that if she acquiesced to sexual gratification, she could “enjoy a whole lot in the Senate.”
Akpabio however denied the Nunieh allegation but did not go to court.
2015 Senatorial Scandal
Akpabio had won election to the Senate as a first timer in 2015 after serving out his two terms as governor. As it went, he fought his way against all norms and traditions of the Senate to emerge the Senate Minority Leader, assuming a similar name he bore while governor of the oil rich-state of Akwa Ibom, the ‘Uncommon Senator’. He called himself the ‘Uncommon Governor’ while serving as governor.
Members of his then political party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), could not fight Akpabio although there were accusations that “a lot of money exchanged hands for his emergence.” The allegation was unproven. Akpabio did not go to court.
Fight With Saraki During Senate Plenary
It did not take long before Akpabio broke parliamentary norms by rejecting a seat assigned to him during the Bukola Saraki Senate presidency.
He was moved from his seat which had no microphone to one that had a microphone after he defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC). But Akpabio stood in the aisle and engaged in a heated exchange of words with Saraki.
Saraki did not threaten him nor ask for his suspension as Akpabio did in the case of Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, the senator representing Kogi Central.
Although he fought to return to the Senate, he lost the 2019 election and instead was rewarded with the post of Minister of Niger Delta, now scrapped by Tinubu.
Financial Scandal
His time as minister was rocked with scandal such that he refused to be subjected to parliamentary rules to defend his ministry’s budget and ignored invitations.
But the most self-indicting scandal was Akpabio accusing members of the National Assembly in 2020 of taking several contracts from the NDDC under his watch contrary to the provisions of Code of Conduct for Public Officers.
Akpabio made the accusation before the House Committee after the acting Managing Director of the NDDC, Nunieh, had accused him before the senate ad hoc panel investigating the alleged mismanagement of N40bn by the interim management committee (IMC) of the NDDC, of fraud.
“When we first came to the NDDC, on the day of going for the inauguration, he told me in the car that ‘Madam MD, If you don’t do what I say, the same pen which I use to sign your letter, it will be the same pen I will use to remove you,” Nunieh had revealed.
“He said the first thing I should do when I get to Port-Harcourt is to change the dollars in the NDDC account. I was scared to do that. After that, he came to Port-Harcourt.
“Two days after the inauguration, he said the first thing I should do is to make sure I change the dollars; I should remove Mr Kaltugo from being legal and send him on compulsory retirement.
“That we cannot have a northerner being the head of the legal team of the legal unit.
“He said I should remove all the other directors that refused to take his instructions during the time of Mrs Akwagaga, that is the predecessor before I came.
“So, he also came with a draft letter that I should write and put it on my letterhead implicating Senator Nwaoboshi of collecting contracts in NDDC.
“For instance, he told me to go and raise a memo and give an emergency contract for flood victims. He wanted me to take an oath; he has denied that but I want to say today, he told me up to three times until we had a reconciliation meeting at the villa in the house of Mr Seriki Abba who is the SA to the president on domestic,” she further revealed.
She also said Akpabio was awarded 30 contracts before she became the commission’s acting MD.
“Then Mr Linus, who was the director, finance, refused to sign because it did not follow due process. Then he also said that I should implicate the chairman of the house committee because the chairman had gone to Ondo state for a meeting to plan against him,” she added.
As it were, Akpabio served out his term and became a candidate of the APC in 2023 in alleged fraudulent circumstances.
Scandalous Return To Senate In 2023
Akpabio participated in the APC presidential primary but lost to Bola Tinubu, former governor of Lagos, now president.
Prior to the presidential primary, on May 27, 2022, Udom Ekpoudom, a former deputy inspector-general of police (DIG), had won a primary organised for the Akwa Ibom north-west senatorial ticket.
However, a parallel primary was also conducted which was won by Ekperikpe Ekpo, but which was said to have been later cancelled over irregularities, while a rerun was conducted on June 8, with Akpabio declared as winner of the exercise.
Mike Igini, resident electoral commissioner (REC) in Akwa Ibom, said INEC officials did not monitor any primary outside the one conducted on May 27.
“Senatorial primary was conducted on the 27th of last month. Was he an aspirant on that day? The answer is no. And the report of that day has been written since,” he said.
However, Akpabio secured victory through the supreme court to become the candidate of the APC and returned to the Senate.
Akpabio: Token Sent To Senators’ Accounts
Few months after emerging Senate President, Akpabio caused what many senators said was a “embarrassing shame” when he said during plenary, “In order to enable all of us to enjoy our holidays, a token has been sent to our various accounts by the clerk of the national assembly.”
But when he was alerted by some of his colleagues that the plenary session was live on television, he then said, “I withdraw that statement.”
Then he became comical: “In order to allow you to enjoy your holiday, the Senate President has sent prayers to your mailboxes to assist you to go on a safe journey and return.”
Fight With FCT Senator, Ireti Kingibe
Akpabio, a political pal of FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, who is a friend to former FCT Senator, Philip Aduda, began to be on collision course with Senator Kingibe who defeated Aduda in the 2023 election.
Many saw the spat between Wike and Kingibe as an extension of the fight between Aduda and Kingibe.
Akpabio talked down on Kingibe during plenary and denied her opportunity to contribute during plenary.
After Mrs Kingibe appeared on TV to condemn Wike’s excesses, Akpabio took on his colleague senator during a road flag off ceremony, saying, “I saw one of the legislators on television talking about you (Wike) and mentioning the fact that she was not carried along.
“Well, she is a member of the Senate. Once a decision is taken, she is bound by the decision. So, please ignore every distraction (from her).
His attack on Mrs Kingibe was such that in December 2024, Kingibe stormed out of plenary when Akpabio denied her the opportunity to present her motion on the demolition across the FCT that Wike had embarked on.
However, Kingibe seemed to have softened her criticism of Akpabio, saying recently in an interview on Arise Tv that had addressed her concerns.
We Will Be Eating While The Youth Protest
In August 2024, when Nigerians protested against hardship, Akpabio, who was at the Niger Delta Ethnic Nationalities, Youths and Women Group Sensitisation Conference in Port Harcourt, Rivers State poured scorn at the protesters saying, ““Those who want to protest can protest, but let us be here eating.”
He was lambasted for being “insensitive” to the plights of Nigerians.
Akpabio To Natasha: Senate Not Nightclub
In 2024 during plenary, Natasha stood up without Akpabio’s permission to make her contribution, which is against parliamentary norms.
Akpabio quickly tackled her saying, “Distinguished Senator Natasha, in the chamber, you have to be recognised before you speak. We are not in a nightclub.”
The attack received wide condemnation and Akpabio had to apologize.
Throw Her Out/Read Impeachment Section To Her
The frosty relationship between the two senators came to a head in the past week when Natasha raised a point of order concerning why her seat was changed but was not granted the right to speak.
Angered by Akpabio’s refusal to let her speak, she let out a huge outburst saying, “I don’t care if I am silenced. I am not afraid of you. You have denied me my privilege.”
Akpabio responded saying, “Can the sergeant at arms please take her out of the Senate,” to the bewilderment of his colleagues. But Natasha said she would not be intimidated and continued ranting at Akpabio.
Akpabio however refused to suspend the senator after saying, “read the section on suspension there.”
Sexual Advances
In all the scandals none has elicited discussion like Natasha’s accusation that she had been under intense sexual assault from Akpabio.
Speaking on Arise Tv on Friday, she said she had failed to get her privileges because she had rejected sexual demands from Akpabio.
She had claimed on Arise TV that in 2023, at Akpabio’s invitation for his birthday party in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, Akpabio held her hand with her husband in tow saying, “‘now that you are a senator, I’m going to create time for us to come and spend quality moment here. You will enjoy it’.
“At that point, I just pulled away… that I don’t understand what he meant.”
She also alleged that Akpabio assaulted her sexually in his office in the National Assembly when she went in for a discussion over an official assignment.
Akpabio has not denied the allegation but his wife, Unoma, has reacted and filed suits against Natasha for embarrassing her family.
It remains to be seen how the current scandal will end. But many Nigerians must be asking how many more scandals can Akpabio endure?
