Speaking on Arise News, Deputy Chief Whip of the Nigerian Senate, Onyekachi Nwaebony has categorically dismissed Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan’s sexual harassment allegations against Senate President Godswill Akpabio as “complete falsehood.”
His narrative, drawn from being in close company with Natasha and her husband on December 8, 2023, the day of the alleged incident.
Nwaebonyi provided his account that disputes Natasha’s claims, intensifying an already polarizing controversy within Nigeria’s upper legislative chamber.
His Eyewitness Account
Senator Nwaebonyi emphasized his close proximity to Natasha and her husband on the day in question, asserting that no harassment occurred. “I was there on the alleged date of 8th day of December 2023 when the alleged sexual harassment took place. I drove with Natasha, I was the closest person to Natasha because the husband is my friend. We drove in the same vehicle from Victor International Airport to the house of the Senate President. I was on the front seat, one husband was at the back seat.”
He elaborated further, painting a picture of a cordial gathering: “When we got to the house of the Senate President, we were entertained by the Senate President with the wife and the children with over 20 Senators. There was never a time the Senate President harassed Natasha. That is just my annoyance. I was there to the end of the day at 12 midnight. We all sang birthday songs, you know, in honor of the Senate President, and at the very end, I drove in the same vehicle with Natasha and her husband back to Four Points Hotel. There was no act of sexual harassment either from the Senate President or from any other person.”
His Doubt on Natasha’s Claims
Nwaebonyi then recounted the events that took place within the timeline Natasha’s allegations took place, questioning the plausibility and timing of Natasha’s allegations “On the following day, she made a tweet on Twitter commending the Senate President, thanking him, because she was about 2 months old, she was even afraid of coming to the Senate President. She was very new in the Senate, so she was still learning the ground.”
Addressing the specific claim of holding hands between Natasha and Akpabio, Nwaebonyi refuted it outright. “Even the holding hands, that she said they walked ahead of others. She was always with her husband, holding hands with her husband.”
He also added “And let me ask you, who is that man that will toast another person’s wife in the presence of the husband in your family house? You know, when you want to cook up lies, cook up lies that are believable.”
Nwaebonyi positions himself as a key eyewitness accounting the controversy of Senator Natasha’s sexual harassment allegations. “it’s a false alarm, it’s complete falsehood,” he declared.
This comes after a recent Senate committee hearing on ethics, privileges, and public petitions resulted in an altercation when Senator Nwaebonyi, a key witness defending Akpabio, clashed with former minister of education, Oby Ezekwesili. The confrontation escalated with personal insults. Nwaebonyi labeled Ezekwesili “an insult to womanhood,” while she called him a “hooligan” prompting an abrupt adjournment as the matter has now moved to court.
