The Nigerian Senate has dismissed claims by suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan that she faces arrest upon her return from the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) event in New York.
In a statement on Monday, Senate Spokesman Adeyemi Adaramodu refuted the allegations, asserting that Senate President Godswill Akpabio and the legislative body had no reason to respond to her claims.
“She’s looking for her lost content creation needle in a haystack,” Adaramodu remarked, rejecting the senator’s accusations.
“The Senate President and the Nigerian Senate have no reason to engage with her anymore.”
Akpoti-Uduaghan had alleged that Akpabio dispatched staff members to remove her from the United Nations premises, suggesting that an arrest awaited her upon arrival in Abuja.
She defended her participation in the IPU event, insisting that it was legitimate despite her suspension.
In response, Adaramodu implied that any concerns the senator had were self-inflicted.
“If she is troubled by her unrestrained remarks against Nigeria at the IPU in New York, she should not drag the Senate into her predicament.
“We are not willing to be part of such a sordid affair,” he stated.
During an interview with an online newspaper on Sunday, Akpoti-Uduaghan claimed she was aware of plans to detain her once she landed in Nigeria.
“I know there are plans to arrest me as soon as I arrive in Abuja. The Senate President sent three staff members, led by the Chargé d’affaires of the Nigerian embassy in New York, to remove me from the UN premises immediately after my speech,” she alleged.
She further claimed that foreign parliamentarians and security personnel intervened to prevent her removal.
The senator explained that she had registered for the meeting online, justifying her attendance despite lacking official approval.
