The suspended Chairman of the Senate Committee on Diaspora and NGOs, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan (PDP, Kogi Central), has issued a satirical apology to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, intensifying ongoing discussions about gender dynamics and power struggles within Nigeria’s legislative chambers.
In a letter laced with biting irony, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan offered a profuse “apology” for what she described as the “grievous crime” of maintaining her dignity and self-respect in Akpabio’s presence.
Mockingly addressing expectations of submission, she wrote: “How remiss of me not to understand that my refusal to indulge your… ‘requests’ was not merely a personal choice but a constitutional violation of certain men’s entitlement.”
Confronting systemic sexism, she continued: “Please find it in your magnanimous heart — somewhere buried deep beneath layers of entitlement — to forgive this stubborn woman who mistakenly believed that her seat in the Senate was earned through elections, not erections.”
Natasha’s letter
The letter read in part:
“Dear Distinguished Senate President Godswill Akpabio,
It is with the deepest sarcasm and utmost theatrical regret that I tender this apology for the grievous crime of possessing dignity and self-respect in your most exalted presence. I have reflected extensively on my unforgivable failure to recognise that legislative success in certain quarters is apparently not earned through merit, but through the ancient art of compliance — of the very personal kind.
How remiss of me not to understand that my refusal to indulge your… ‘requests’ was not merely a personal choice but a constitutional violation of the unwritten laws of certain men’s entitlement. Truly, I must apologize for prioritising competence over capitulation, vision over vanity, and the people’s mandate over private dinners behind closed doors.
I now realise the catastrophic consequences of my actions: legislation delayed, tempers flared, and the tragic bruising of egos so large they require their own postcodes. For this disruption to the natural order of ‘quid pro quo,’ I bow my head in fictional shame.
Please find it in your magnanimous heart — somewhere buried deep beneath layers of entitlement — to forgive this stubborn woman who mistakenly believed that her seat in the Senate was earned through elections, not erections.
I remain,
Yours in eternal resistance,
Senator Natasha H. Akpoti-Uduaghan
Unafraid, Unbought, and Unbroken.”
Tensions between Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan and Senate President Akpabio first became public in July 2024 after Akpabio rebuked her during a plenary session, saying, “We are not in a nightclub,” when she attempted to speak without formal recognition. The remark was widely criticised as sexist, sparking nationwide outrage.
Although Akpabio later issued a statement saying no offence was intended and reaffirming his respect for women, the relationship between the two further deteriorated. In February 2025, Akpoti-Uduaghan accused him of sexual harassment, citing inappropriate comments and advances, but her petition was dismissed by Senate leadership on procedural grounds.
Her later suspension from the Senate for six months, over what was officially described as unrelated misconduct, was seen by many Nigerians as a retaliatory move to silence her. The suspension triggered nationwide protests under the slogan “We are all Natasha,” with activists and women’s rights groups rallying in her defence and condemning systemic discrimination in Nigerian politics.
While some groups, such as the Kogi Patriotic Consultative Assembly, urged her to apologise and move on, others hailed her defiance as a powerful stand against entrenched biases.
Akpabio has continued to deny all allegations, describing Akpoti-Uduaghan’s claims as “baseless” and “malicious,” and has threatened legal action for defamation.
