Why IPU won't consider Akpoti-Uduagan’s petition

The Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Inter-Parliamentary Activities, Jimoh Ibrahim, has said the complaints made by Kogi Central Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan before the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) regarding her suspension from the Senate would soon be dismissed.

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Mr Ibrahim, who represents Ondo South Senatorial District, argued that Mr Akpoti-Uduaghan’s attendance at the IPU meeting held at the United Nations headquarters in New York on Tuesday, was unauthorised and, therefore, illegal.

He said this in a statement on Friday.

Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan took her case to the IPU, apparently seeking international intervention in her suspension from the Senate.

The embattled senator was suspended for six months for allegedly flouting Senate Standing Rules.

She addressed delegates at an IPU meeting held at the United Nations headquarters in New York, during which she also raised allegations of sexual harassment against the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.

The Kogi senator described her suspension from the Senate as unlawful and a deliberate attempt to silence her for speaking out against alleged misconduct in the Nigerian upper legislative chamber.

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In response, the President of the IPU, Tulia Ackson, said the global parliamentary organisation would take necessary steps on the cases as reported by the senator, but it would also provide an opportunity for the Nigerian Senate to present its side of the story before taking any action.

However, a Nigerian delegate to the IPU meeting, Kafilat Ogbara, held a press briefing a day after, during which she urged the National Assembly to ensure a fair and transparent investigation into the issue.

Mrs Ogbara, who chairs the House Committee on Women Affairs and Social Development, also read a letter from the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, explaining that Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension was due to her alleged misconduct during the plenary and violations of Senate Standing Rules, not because of the sexual harassment claims against Mr Akpabio.

Basis for dismissal

In his statement, Mr Ibrahim listed reasons why the IPU is unlikely to entertain Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan’s petition.

He explained that only countries, not individual lawmakers, hold membership in the IPU. This means that complaints can only be lodged by a member-state against another, not by individual legislators against their own country.

“A petition can only be lodged against another member state by a member state. This implies that the IPU cannot consider petitions from individuals who are not members. The suspended Senator Natasha is not a member of the IPU, but Nigeria is,” he said.

Mr Ibrahim also noted that Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan had no official authorisation to represent Nigeria at the IPU meeting and that her attendance was not approved by the Nigerian Senate or its Inter-Parliamentary Committee.

“Additionally, the suspended Senator cannot represent the Federal Republic of Nigeria. “I served as the interim president of the IPU in Geneva in 2023, and I am familiar with how the IPU operates after presiding over its proceedings.

“Furthermore, as Chairman of the Interparliamentary Committee in the Nigerian Senate, I did not approve or authorise the suspended Senator Natasha to attend the IPU on behalf of Nigeria to the Senate President,” the senator said.

READ ALSO:EXCLUSIVE: Fresh controversy trails Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension as senators disown committee report

Speculations surrounding Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan’s attendance

Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan’s ability to attend the IPU meeting without the support of the Nigerian government is raising concern among political figures.

Some speculate that she may be receiving supports from undisclosed political forces on the grounds that funding such an international engagement without official sponsorship would be challenging.

However, the IPU will determine whether Mrs Akpoti-Uduaghan was qualified to be at the meeting or not.