“Nigerian Senate is like a cult”

A Nigerian Senator, who claims to have been harassed sexually by one of the best politicians in the country, told the BBC that the Senate was acting as a “cult”.

Two weeks ago, Natasha Akpoti-Udugan was stopped for six months after submitting a petition saying she was harassed by Senate President Godwill Akpabio, which he denies.

His service also rejected the cult comparison – the most turn in a row, which covered Nigeria, raising questions about gender equality in the social conservative nation.

Akpoti-Uduaghan said she was punished for speaking against the system and that she was now afraid of her and the safety of her two years, as her security details were stripped.

“The Nigerian Senate acts as a cult. The chairman of the Senate rules the Senate as a dictator, not a Democrat. There is no freedom of expression, there is no freedom of expression, and someone who dared to go against him is shortened in size,” the 45-year-old interview said in his first television interview after stopping.

In a statement to the BBC, Senate’s deputy clutch Onyekachi Nwebonyi said that Senator Akpoti-Udwagan was not drowning and that “her own legislative activity disproves this statement.”

Akpoti-Uduaghan, which is the Democratic Party of Opposition Peoples (PDP), claims that sexual harassment began in 2023 when he visited Acpabio’s home with his husband.

She said Acpabio “shook her hand impressively” and said “I will make the opportunity to come here and have a good moment.”

Nwebonyi, who says he was also present during the visit, said: “In the period, did the Senate President have made any unwanted sexual progress of Senator Akpoti in his rural home.”

But Akpoti-Udowagan claims that this is only one incident from many and that harassment lasts for several months.

She said that while with other senators in the Senate’s premises, Akpabio made a comment on the effect of: “Natasha, which your husband is really glad, seems to be able to make good movements with his waist.”

“The chairman of the Senate said this,” Akpoti-Udugan told the BBC.

“He makes many sexist statements, then they (the senators) laugh. He says we are all men in the Senate, she must be used to it.”

For his part, Nwebonyi said these allegations were “completely false”.

Nigeria has one of the largest number of parliamentarians women in Africa.

Akpoti-auduhan one of the four women of women in parliament of 109 members, and she is also the first female senator in her country.

Her petition against Akpabio was rejected due to “procedural errors”.

Then, on March 6, the Ethics Committee submitted to Akpoti-Udugan a six-month suspension without paying, citing an “uneducated and destructive” behavior during the Senate debate.

Akpoti-Kuduaghan told the BBC that no access to stopping as a result of stopping.

“We have had people in the Nigerian space in recent decades who have been killed for having strong views against the government,” she said.

“If I take my child for a walk – because I have a two -year -old – will I be killed? Will I be attacked?”

Civil society groups in the country have expressed concerns about the treatment of Akpoti-Udugan, calling for a transparent investigation into her claims.

“All we can say is that today is a sad day for Nigerian women who are fighting for emancipation. Out of 109 senators, only four are women and one has already been stopped,” said Women’s Women’s Hadiza Adenta Rights when the suspension was required.

While the rights and some social media groups have expressed their support for Akpoti-Nuaghan, it also has its own fair share of offenders.

After she was stopped, two groups of protesters gathered near parliament in the capital, Abuzha – one supported the president of the Senate and the other to support her colleague, chanting “Acpabio to go.”

Akpoti-Uduaghan was also under pressure from misuse of misogynists on social media after the accusations made, she told the BBC.

The scandal is the latest episode in a political career that has been rocky from the beginning.

Akpoti-Uduaghan was running for the Governor of the State of Cogi in 2019 and claims that her candidacy was caused by her inheritance with a mixed race.

She eventually appeared on the newsletter, but was subjected to physical and verbal attacks during her campaign.

In 2023, she ran for senate and lost the election. The poll was hated by violence and after Akpoti-Udugan brought the issue in court, the result of the election was canceled.

“I thought the worst was over with the election,” she told the BBC.

“But for a woman, I guess it’s never really right? These are just different parts, different heads.”

Akpoti-Uduaghan has taken court action in an attempt to suspend her suspension and plans to apply again to the Senate with his allegations of sexual harassment.

Despite the heavy emotional fee, she said she did not regret being spoken.

She said she was feeling encouraged by her husband, her child and the masses of supporters outside her family, who include female politicians from other African countries.

“I received calls daily from women who contact me and told me that they were experiencing the same thing in their parliament, but they couldn’t talk,” she said.

“They say, Natasha, do this for us. This is my story and my story is that of many women in Nigeria who do not have the courage to talk.”