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Akpabio’s Gate: Akande Accuses Senate Of ‘Ganging Up’ Against Sen. Natasha

Published

6 hours ago

March 6, 2025

…Nwaebonyi shields colleagues

Ex-presidential spokesman, Laolu Akande, on Thursday, raised an alarm over what he described as attempts to muzzle the lawmaker representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.

Recall Akpoti-Uduaghan recently accused the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, of sexually harassing her, a claim the latter has vehemently denied.

Weighing in on the issue during an interview on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily, Akande urged the Senate to stop what he described as gang up against the lawmaker.

“They need to stop all these images, meetings, and ganging up against this woman. That has to stop. The leadership of the Senate needs to show us that there is going to be a dispassionate consideration of her allegations,” he said.

“Once that is sorted, if you think that there is a need to punish her for violating the rules, it is the better way to handle it. This idea of all of the men coming out and brandishing the rules is not looking pretty at all.

“This woman has said to the whole world that she has been sexually harassed. We have to be careful, the Nigerian Senate has to be careful not to create an impression that we are trying to silence her.

“What we have been seen so far is a lot of men holding meetings, speaking out, coming to the media to run this woman down. It is a poor reflection on the Nigerian Senate.”

But Senator Onyekachi Nwaebonyi has defended the Red Chamber and claimed that her colleague Natasha was pursuing a personal interest.

“Senator Natasha is claiming sexual harassment because she lost the chairmanship of local content and not that she was harassed by Senator Akpabio or any other senator,” the lawmaker who represents Ebonyi North said on the same show.

He said, “Senator Natasha was the chairman of the Senate Committee on Local Content which she felt she was comfortable with. But in the Senate, from time to time, committee leadership is changed; reshuffled and her committee was affected like every other chairmen.

“She was shifted to the Senate Committee on Diaspora which didn’t go down well with Senator Natasha.”

Amid the sexual harassment claims, the Senate Committee on Ethics, Code of Conduct, and Public Petitions on Wednesday dismissed Senator Natasha’s sexual harassment and abuse of office petition against Akpabio.

It declared the claims “dead on arrival,” and cited procedural violations and legal constraints.

Related Topics:chairman Nigerian president Senate woman

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Popular Youth Leader Shot Dead Over Tricycle Park Dispute By Security Operativesà

Published

28 minutes ago

March 6, 2025

Naijablitznews

Chidebe Ibeakuzie (aka Mighty), a youth leader in Obosi community, Idemili North Local Government Area (LGA) of Anambra State, has been shot dead.

Multiple sources said he was shot dead by security agents in a tussle over the ownership and control of a tricycle park near the military cantonment in Onitsha.

During the clash, two Obosi youths were reportedly abducted, others injured, while an unspecified number of Keke Operators and passersby sustained gunshot injuries.

The unrest stemmed from a heated dispute between the families of late Tochukwu Anyaoku, an Obosi native, and Edward Ibuzo, a former member of the Anambra State House of Assembly representing Onitsha North 1 Constituency.

The late Anyaoku had leased the tricycle park before his death last year, with his wife taking over its management after his demise.

However, Ibuzo allegedly laid claim to the land, sparking a bitter standoff.

Obosi youths accused Ibuzo of orchestrating the attack by engaging operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS), who they claim were responsible for the fatal shooting of Mighty.

In response, Ibuzo denied any involvement, stating via a WhatsApp call to journalists that he was in Germany at the time of the incident, while he also has a court judgement authorizing him to take over the park.

He alleged that DSS operatives had intervened after witnessing a suspected kidnapping, which led to an exchange of gunfire.

A prominent Obosi stakeholder, Omezie Chukwurah, also known as “Governor Obosi,” lamented the escalating violence, revealing that previous police interventions had led to another Obosi youth being shot in the head.

Immediate Avonex
He further alleged that the operatives who killed Mighty arrived in vehicles linked to Ibuzo.

The Sun

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PDP Crisis: Former Lawmaker Ossai Blames Party Elders, Defects to APC

Published

1 hour ago

March 6, 2025

Gloria Ikibah

…say the centre can no longer hold the umbrella

…say APC brings solution through president Tinubu

By Gloria Ikibah

A former House of Representatives member, Hon. Ossai Nicholas Ossai, has attributed the ongoing turmoil in the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to its elders and founding members.

Ossai, who represented Ndokwa/Ukwuani Federal Constituency in Delta State under the PDP in the 9th Assembly, officially joined the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) on Wednesday.

Speaking at a press conference on Thursday at the National Assembly complex in Abuja, he stated that attempts to restore unity in the PDP had failed due to deep-seated ideological and political conflicts. He described the situation as a clash of opposing views, making reconciliation nearly impossible.

He said: “I’ve been with PDP since 1999, and we have tried as much as possible to fix PDP, especially when they have issues of leadership in the past. The National Assembly, who are PDP members tried to strengthen PDP, but I believe today that strengthening has been removed from the hands of the Parliament.

“Among the gladiators who are founding fathers of PDP too, have tried as much as possible to break the umbrella. So the centre cannot hold, and judging from the fact that all political parties in Nigeria are centralists in programmes and policies, there’s no sharp ideological programs that you can say you can separate from each political party today in the country.”

Speaking on why he joined the APC, Ossai said Tinubu is a man with focus and championing great feat. And so he wants to assist in navigating Nigeria into the next promise land.

“People want solution and it is the person who will give solution to the people that you have to converge on. APC gives solution through President Tinubu to the people. That’s why we are converging. Tinubu is the personality that is bringing progressive directions to this generation. So we converge on him.

“We need People who are great leaders, who champion policies that can navigate the country to the promised land. We have had some strong leaders before who could not do it, but today we have a very strong leader that I believe in and that leader is Asiwaju Tinubu.

“I followed him up during the time of SDP in Lagos. I was part of the Abalajobi groups in Lagos, and from the human rights up to SDP. I have seen his leadership style. As a governor of Lagos State, I followed him up. Then, I was a member of the House of Assembly.

“He is somebody I pray that he will continue to succeed and become president of the country. And today he is the president, and he has issued in policies that are germane to sustaining our country, strengthening our country for the future.

“Today, my role model, Asiwaju Tinubu is championing the course for the next generations. And there’s every need for me, to follow my role model who is doing great since the umbrella has been broken, by people who are supposed to mend the umbrella.

“His policies aligns with mine. And I feel that also Delta States will align with such policies, which is currently not happening. And I feel that I can join forces with those of them who have been strongly in APC, in Delta State, to face Delta State.

“I can bet you that APC is going to win Delta State. And not only winning the governorship, but winning the presidential election. And not only win the presidential election, I use my federal constituency as the basis to champion this course.

“You will see the recent program that President Tinubu has been chuning out. You can see what is going on in terms of infrastructure development in different places that have been abandoned over the years. You can also see that currently, a policy came out from the federal government through a policy of Inherit, whereby those people who are having challenges in issues of kidney problems, diabetes, and others.

“You can also see policies on agriculture, where all APC governors are gearing towards agricultural revolutions. And you can see that inflationary rate has dropped in terms of food in the market. You people who go to the market to buy food, you go to buy tomatoes and peppers.

“So, I have come to join APC to assist in navigating Nigeria into the next promised land. I think that’s why I joined APC. Like I said, the entire parties is a centralist party. No sharp ideological program. But we have the capability of implementing this program, and APC stands out. So APC to the next level”, Ossai asserted.

News

Akpabio’s Gate: Natasha reacts to suspension, says “this injustice cannot be sustained”

Published

3 hours ago

March 6, 2025

Naijablitznews

…walks out of chamber

Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan has reacted to her suspension declaring that this injustice cannot be sustained.

In her words: “This injustice cannot be sustained,” as she walks out of chamber as Senate hands her six months suspension

The Senate had slammed a six month suspension on Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan consequent upon Ethics panel’s recommendation.

She is also directed to tender a written apology regarding her allegations against Senate President Godswill Akpabio.

The recommendation was announced on Thursday during plenary by Senator Neda Imasuen (LP, Edo South), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Ethics, Code of Conduct, and Public Petitions.

The Senate also dismissed Akpoti-Uduaghan’s claims that Akpabio had been silencing her in the chamber, labelling the allegations as baseless and frivolous.