Senate President Godswill Akpabio has described as ‘baseless, false, and inflammatory’ allegations made against him by Senators Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan and Elisha Abbo.
Akpoti-Uduaghan represents Kogi Central in the current session, while Abbo represented Adamawa North until he judicially lost his seat in October 2023.
In a statement on Friday, Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the Senate President, Mr. Eseme Eyiboh said that formal letters demanding public retractions, apologies, and compensation for reputational damage are being prepared for both individuals.
“Having failed to gain traction with that narrative, she has now escalated her campaign of misinformation to a deadly and defamatory dimension’.
In a recent interview on Arise News, Abbo alleged that Akpabio orchestrated his removal from the Senate.
‘He told me that five senators would be removed. I asked how he knew, and he said, ‘I am the senate president. I know’. True to his words, five of us were removed. I had no idea that I was one of them’, he said.
Eyiboh said that Abbo had retracted that same accusation in 2023, admitting it was based on incorrect assumptions.
The statement reads: ‘His removal from office was the outcome of a constitutionally grounded judicial decision by the Court of Appeal, which independently determined that he was not duly elected to represent Adamawa North.
‘The Senate President does not and cannot unilaterally approve or deny such requests. Any delays or rejections would have been based solely on due diligence and compliance with established protocols’.
The statement described the allegations as part of a ‘coordinated and politically motivated smear campaign’ aimed at undermining the senate leadership.
The statement added: ‘Senator Godswill Akpabio remains undeterred. As a statesman devoted to national unity, institutional integrity, and the rule of law, he will not be distracted by malicious falsehoods or inflammatory rhetoric.
‘Regardless of the necessity for legal redress, formal letters of demand, seeking immediate public retractions, apologies, and compensation for reputational harm, are underway to be served on both Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan and Mr Elisha Abbo’.
