Nigeria’s political arena got heated up on Friday as the country’s Senate President, Godswill Obot Akpabio, launched a staggering N200 billion defamation suit against Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan—an escalation that now sets the stage for one of the most consequential legal face-offs in recent memory.

According to filings before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Akpabio alleges that Senator Akpoti’s televised and online interviews amounted to a calculated smear campaign accusing him of sexual harassment. His legal team argued that the allegations—broadcast across major media platforms and amplified by millions online—subjected the Senate President to “national humiliation, ridicule, and grave reputational injury.”

Akpabio is asking the court for sweeping remedies: massive financial damages, the deletion of all online publications containing the claims, and compulsory apologies to be aired repeatedly on national television, radio, and digital platforms.

Court records show that after initial attempts to serve Senator Akpoti directly failed, a judge authorised substituted service through the Clerk of the National Assembly on 6 November 2025—clearing the way for the case to proceed.

In her response, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan confirmed the receipt of the lawsuit on Friday, adding that she welcomes the legal battle—noting that she was previously prevented from presenting her petition to the Senate Committee on Ethics and Privileges because Senate leadership claimed a related matter was already in court. That decision, she maintained, effectively shielded Akpabio from scrutiny within the Senate.

With the court now in play, the senator said she finally has the platform she was denied.

“I’m ready to prove everything,” she said in a blunt statement. She insisted she will show she was sexually harassed—and that her refusal to give in triggered “sustained political intimidation and retaliation.” Her message to the Senate President was unambiguous: “See you in court, Godswill Akpabio.”

The explosive case now heads into full litigation, with both sides preparing witness lists, documents, and media records. Beyond its personal implications, the trial is expected to challenge the Nigerian political system’s handling of sexual misconduct allegations lodged at the highest levels of public office.

All attention will now shift to the FCT High Court as the legal confrontation begins to unfold. (The Guardian)

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