Nigeria’s Senate President, Chief Godswill Akpabio, has clarified that his 40 billion naira defamation lawsuit against Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan is not new, insisting the suit was filed over three months ago and only became public because of the Kogi lawmaker’s renewed online accusations.
Okay News reports that the clarification came through a detailed statement issued by Akpabio’s media office on Thursday.
The Senate President disputed Akpoti-Uduaghan’s claim that the suit was “just filed,” describing her account as misleading and designed to distort public perception.
According to the statement, the delay in public awareness stemmed from the senator’s alleged repeated refusal to accept service of court documents.
The statement asserted that Akpabio approached the court after Akpoti-Uduaghan made “grave and unsubstantiated accusations capable of inflicting severe reputational damage.”
It added that her allegations of sexual misconduct lodged before a Senate committee and aired publicly had never been supported by any evidence.
Quoting the statement, Akpabio’s office said, “On 5 December 2025, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan again resorted to social media to claim incorrectly and misleadingly that His Excellency… had only just filed a multi-billion-naira defamation suit against her… These allegations… have never been supported by a single shred of evidence before the Senate Committee or before any competent authority.”
Akpabio maintained that the suit had been in the court system for months, although progress was initially slowed by routine judicial procedures.
His office explained that efforts to serve Akpoti-Uduaghan were unsuccessful because she allegedly evaded service, a development said to be confirmed in an affidavit by the court bailiff.
“Each attempt failed due to her deliberate evasion of service… Only after these repeated evasions did the court, in November this year, grant the application for substituted service,” the statement said.
The Senate President accused Akpoti-Uduaghan of attempting to turn a legal matter into online spectacle, saying her public commentary amounted to “orchestrated narratives and staged outrage.” The statement also referenced her earlier six-month suspension from the Senate, describing her reaction to that episode as another example of “digital agitation.”
The statement challenged the Kogi senator to present the evidence she claims to have in court rather than relying on viral commentary or public sympathy.
“The law is guided by proof, procedure, and due process, not sentiment, not emotion, and certainly not social-media theatrics,” it added, urging her to file her defence and engage formally with the case.
Concluding, Akpabio’s office said the matter would ultimately be resolved in the courtroom, where both parties would be expected to argue their claims before a competent judge.
