Senate President Godswill Akpabio has petitioned the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, demanding an investigation into the assassination allegation leveled against him by suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.
In the petition dated April 3, 2025, Akpabio denied the claims made by the Kogi Central Senator during a Sallah address on April 1 in her hometown of Obeiba-Ijioma, Okehi local government area of Kogi state.
Akpoti-Uduaghan had accused Akpabio of allegedly directing former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello and the incumbent Governor, Ahmed Usman Ododo, to assassinate her and frame her constituents for the act.
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“Akpabio told Yahaya Bello to kill me. Akpabio told him to make sure that killing me does not happen in Abuja. It should be done here. So it will seem as if the people killed me here. I didn’t make that public, but we did notify the police about it,” she stated.
Also speaking during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Thursday night, Akpoti-Uduaghan said she was aware that Akpabio was considering legal action in response to her claims.
Natasha welcomed the move and stood by her allegations. “I am hearing that the Senate President wants to sue me for that,” she said. “I will tell him to go ahead. We will meet and cross that bridge.”
Describing the claims as “heinous lies” and a “reckless and deliberate attempt” to tarnish his reputation, Akpabio urged the police to probe the matter thoroughly.
He also forwarded the petition to the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, seeking Akpoti-Uduaghan’s prosecution for criminal defamation.
Akpabio further described the allegations as politically motivated and aimed at inciting unrest and damaging his public image.
The Senate President said: “I write to formally bring to your attention and seek immediate investigation and prosecution of a criminally defamatory and malicious statement made against me by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, a suspended member of the Nigerian Senate on the 1st of April, 2025 and which was widely publicised on radio stations, televisions and newspapers, including the social media.
“In the public outburst at Kogi State while addressing her audience, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan falsely alleged that I instructed the former Governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, to ‘assassinate her in Kogi State instead of Abuja’ with the intent of making it appear that her constituents were responsible for her death.”
“This statement is not only a heinous lie but a reckless and deliberate attempt to damage my reputation, endanger my life and security, and incite political unrest.”
The Senate President noted that the allegation was made without any supporting evidence, adding that the widespread media coverage it received further exacerbated the impact of the false claim.
He said: “The severity of this false allegation, and the fact that it has gained public traction, makes it necessary that law enforcement agencies treat it with the urgency it deserves.”
He called for a thorough investigation and prosecution of Akpoti-Uduaghan under the relevant provisions of the law.
However, the legal team of the suspended senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has reacted strongly to a formal petition filed by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, accusing her of criminal defamation and incitement.
Reacting through her legal counsel, Victor Giwa, Senator Natasha acknowledged receipt of Akpabio’s petition but maintained that her statement was not a political gimmick but a desperate cry for help.
“She has received the petition and has responded. What happened when she made that statement was her crying out to the general public to understand what she is exposed to,” Giwa said in a manner that appears fidgeting over the issue.
The SAN criticised the decision to withdraw Natasha’s security details shortly after she was suspended from the Senate, despite her being a politically exposed person with valid concerns for her safety.
“You are aware that the Senate President ordered the withdrawal of her security. If somebody has committed gross misconduct, what has that got to do with the withdrawal of her security?
“I mean, you say she’s not going to the office, okay fine, I mean, you don’t need the security to enter the office.
“You did stop her from coming to carry out her legislative duty as a senator but she has her life outside the Senate complex. And she’s a politically exposed person and you ordered her security details to be withdrawn!”
