The suspended senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, is expected to appear in court on Tuesday following a formal summons, her lead counsel, West Idahosa (SAN), has confirmed
Idahosa, however, noted that it remains unclear whether the Federal Government intends to proceed with her arraignment on the same day.
Regardless of the government’s intentions, he affirmed that Akpoti-Uduaghan would comply fully with the court’s directives as a law-abiding citizen.
The Federal Government, through the Director of Public Prosecutions, Mohammed Abubakar, has filed criminal defamation charges against Akpoti-Uduaghan.
The charges stem from statements she allegedly made during a live television broadcast and in a private phone conversation, targeting the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, and former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello.
Filed on May 16, 2025 at the Federal Capital Territory High Court and marked CR/297/25, the charge accuses Akpoti-Uduaghan of alleging, during an appearance on ‘Politics Today’ on Channels Television on April 3, 2025, that Akpabio and Bello conspired to assassinate her.
According to the charge, she was quoted as saying:
“It was part of the meeting, the discussions that Akpabio had with Yahaya Bello that night to eliminate me… he then emphasised that I should be killed in Kogi.”
In addition, the government alleges that Akpoti-Uduaghan made further defamatory claims during a private telephone conversation on 27 March 2025 with a woman identified as Dr Sandra Duru. In that conversation, she purportedly accused Akpabio of being connected to an organ harvesting scheme involving the late Iniubong Umoren, allegedly to benefit his ailing wife.
Akpabio, Bello, and four other individuals have been listed as key witnesses in the case.
Speaking with news newsmen on the telephone, Idahosa emphasised the legal team’s preparedness to defend Akpoti-Uduaghan in court.
“If the case is called tomorrow, we will respond accordingly with our client,” he said.
“The issue of protest is irrelevant to us; we are lawyers, and our focus is on defending charges we believe are contestable. Protests are the concern of civil society groups and others in that space.”
He added, “Our client is a law-abiding citizen. Why wouldn’t she be there? It’s a summons we have undertaken. Only institutions that show contempt for court orders would fail to appear — and she does not fall into that category.”
When asked about the likelihood of arraignment, Idahosa replied, “We don’t know. We saw a notice of amended charges. We don’t know what they are trying to do. They’ve amended the charges once and could do so again; that’s their prerogative.”
