I Was Never Privy to the Investigative Report Used to Suspend Senator Natasha, Clarifies Kingibe

The lawmaker representing the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Senator Ireti Kingibe, has revealed that she was completely left in the dark regarding the panel report that triggered the suspension of Kogi Central representative, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan. Kingibe made the disclosure on Wednesday night during a live appearance on Arise Television’s Prime Time program.

According to the FCT lawmaker, she was physically absent when the document was finalized and reviewed, as she was participating in an official legislative retreat focused on national tax reforms. Consequently, she stated she never had any opportunity to read or vet the findings.

“I never saw the report that led to Natasha’s suspension. I was away attending a retreat. I previously explained that I went there alongside three or four of my fellow colleagues who serve on that exact committee,” Kingibe noted.

Detailing her movements on the day in question, Kingibe explained that she briefly went to the venue of the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, where she appended her signature to the attendance register before departing for the tax reform conference, which she deemed a more critical priority for her immediate constituents.

“We showed up at the Committee on Petitions and Public Complaints, signed the roll, and then I exited to participate in the tax reform retreat, which I believed was far more vital at that moment. The tax policies directly impact the people I represent much more than the disciplinary trial of a colleague, and I assumed that the other committee members who weren't at the retreat would manage the disciplinary process appropriately,” she elaborated.

The FCT representative further stated that she had voiced her frustrations regarding the lack of access to the report to several other lawmakers, naming Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe as one of the individuals she approached.

“I formally complained to some of my colleagues, particularly to Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe. I expressed my bitterness to him quite clearly that I had not been given access to that text. I didn’t see it back then, and to this very moment, I still have not laid my eyes on it,” she stated.

The disciplinary action taken against Akpoti-Uduaghan by the upper legislative chamber has sparked widespread public commentary and intense debate across the country.