“I Never Saw The Report,” Kingibe Says On Natasha’s Suspension
A fresh crack has opened in the contested record of how the Senate suspended Kogi Central lawmaker Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, after the senator representing the Federal Capital Territory, Ireti Kingibe, stated publicly that she never reviewed the committee report that recommended the disciplinary action.
Kingibe made the disclosure on Wednesday during an interview on Arise Television’s Prime Time. According to her, she was attending a retreat on tax reforms when the report was being considered and so had no opportunity to study it.
“I never saw the report that led to Natasha’s suspension. I was at a retreat. I had earlier stated that I was there with three or four other senators who are members of the committee,” she said.
The FCT senator explained that she attended a session of the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, signed the attendance register, and then left for the retreat, which she considered more pressing for her constituents.
“We attended the Committee on Petitions and Public Complaints, signed the attendance register, and I later left for the tax reform retreat, which I considered more important at the time,” she said.
She added that the matter “affects my constituents much more than disciplining a senator.”
Kingibe said she had complained bitterly to a colleague about not having access to the document. The PUNCH reported her as naming Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, while other outlets quoted her as referencing Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin. She said she complained “very bitterly that I have not seen that report. I didn’t see it then; I have not seen it till now.”
Her comments deepen a controversy reignited days earlier. On Monday, Edo North Senator Adams Oshiomhole alleged that the signatures of at least three senators were either forged or improperly attached to the report recommending Akpoti-Uduaghan’s six-month suspension, citing Kingibe as one whose name appeared though she said she had not signed.
Oshiomhole argued that committee members are expected to sign reports only to endorse them and may abstain where they disagree.
The Senate has firmly rejected the forgery claims. Senate spokesperson Yemi Adaramodu described the allegation as mischief, questioning why it was being raised about a year after the matter was concluded, and insisted that any aggrieved senator would have raised it on the floor of the chamber.
The dispute revives one of the most divisive episodes of the 10th Senate. Akpoti-Uduaghan was suspended on March 6, 2025, for six months following a recommendation from the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, then chaired by Senator Neda Imasuen, amid her sexual harassment allegation against Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
The Senate has consistently maintained that the sanction was based on alleged breaches of its rules and procedures rather than the allegations levelled against the Senate President.
The courts later weighed in. In a judgment delivered on July 4, 2025, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja declared the six-month suspension excessive and a violation of the rights of Kogi Central constituents, noting that senators sit for only 181 days in a legislative year.
The same court also fined Akpoti-Uduaghan N5 million for contempt over a social media post. Akpabio subsequently filed a cross-appeal challenging aspects of the judgment.
That the legality of the suspension remains tied up in appeals, even as fresh questions emerge over the authenticity of the committee report, suggests the controversy is far from over. While critics argue that the latest disclosures raise serious concerns about the process that led to the suspension, Senate leaders have framed the renewed allegations as an attempt to reopen a matter they consider settled.