Suspended Senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, is scheduled to appear before the Federal Capital Territory High Court on Tuesday, following a court summons.
Her lead counsel, West Idahosa (SAN), confirmed her appearance on Sunday, stating that despite uncertainty surrounding the Federal Government’s intentions, Akpoti-Uduaghan would comply as a law-abiding citizen.
The Federal Government, through the Director of Public Prosecutions, Mohammed Abubakar, filed criminal charges against the senator, accusing her of making defamatory statements during a live television interview and a private phone call.
According to the charge sheet marked CR/297/25 and filed on May 16, 2025, Akpoti-Uduaghan is alleged to have claimed during an April 3 appearance on Channels TV’s Politics Today that Senate President Godswill Akpabio and former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello discussed plans to assassinate her. She was quoted saying: “It was part of the meeting, the discussions that Akpabio had with Yahaya Bello that night to eliminate me… he then emphasised that I should be killed in Kogi.”
The charges also allege that in a separate phone call on March 27 with one Dr. Sandra Duru, Akpoti-Uduaghan accused Akpabio of being involved in organ harvesting related to the late Iniubong Umoren, allegedly for the benefit of his ailing wife.
Akpabio, Bello, and four others are listed as key witnesses in the case.
Idahosa emphasized the defense team’s readiness: “If the case is called tomorrow, we will respond accordingly with our client. Protests are not our concern, we are focused on contesting the charges legally.”
He reiterated that Akpoti-Uduaghan would honor the court summons and stressed that only institutions that disrespect court orders would fail to appear.
On the possibility of an arraignment, Idahosa remarked: “We don’t know. We’ve seen a notice of amended charges, but we’re unsure of the government’s exact plans. They’ve amended the charges once and may do so again — that’s up to them.”
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