Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central, has formally responded to Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) Olisa Agbakoba, who recently demanded that she retract her sexual harassment allegation against Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
Agbakoba, a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association, had in a letter dated April 14, 2025, asked the senator to withdraw her claim and provide evidence of the alleged harassment said to have occurred on December 8, 2023.
In her response dated April 30, Senator Natasha rejected any suggestion that she had ignored the letter, stating that she was never served.
“I place it on formal record that no such letters have ever been served upon me by post, courier, or personal delivery,” she wrote. “The imputation of recalcitrance is therefore inoperative.”
She explained that her silence was guided by the legal principle of lis pendens, which discourages public commentary on issues under litigation. She cited two ongoing suits: one, filed by Akpabio’s wife demanding ₦250 billion in damages at the FCT High Court; the other, her own suit at the Federal High Court in Abuja challenging her six-month suspension from the Senate.
“While Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/384/2025 relates to my suspension, Suit No. CV/816/2025—filed by your client’s spouse—directly concerns the sexual harassment allegations,” Natasha stated.
She criticized Agbakoba for what she described as a double standard—attempting to shape public opinion through media engagement while previously invoking the sub judice rule to block a Senate investigation.
“A litigant may not approbate in the courts and reprobate in the press,” she said.
Natasha also reiterated her claim that Senate President Akpabio presided over deliberations that led to her suspension, accusing him of violating the doctrine of natural justice.
“Nemo judex in causa sua: no one ought to be a judge in his own cause,” she added.
Responding to claims that her prior cordial interactions with Akpabio undermined her allegations, Natasha insisted that professionalism should not be misinterpreted.
“Civility should not be mistaken for consent or comfort. To do so trivialises the serious issue of sexual harassment, especially in a workplace where power dynamics are at play,” she said.
She further argued that Agbakoba had no legal standing to demand evidence outside the courtroom, stating, “A private legal practitioner, however distinguished, is not vested with adjudicatory authority under the Constitution or any statute of the Federal Republic.”
Senator Natasha affirmed her commitment to the complaint she submitted on February 28, 2025, and her related court filings. She urged Agbakoba to properly advise his client, Akpabio, on the ethical implications of presiding over a matter in which he is personally implicated.
“This letter is issued solely to correct the public record and to prevent a constructive admission being inferred from silence,” she concluded.
She requested that all future correspondence be routed through her legal team.