By Etop Ekanem

A group, Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District Indigenes in Lagos, has said the sexual harassment accusation by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan against President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio is a conspiracy by retrogressive forces in the polity to smear the hard-earned reputation of “our illustrious son and Uncommon Leader and assured him of “our loyalty and support at this critical moment.”

According to a statement by Elder Samuel Usoro, President of the group, “ISDI, Lagos is not unmindful of the fact that his result-oriented leadership as Senate President has brought appreciable stability, sustained peace and commendable progress in the affairs of the red chamber, coupled with the progressive Ahmed Tinubu, may have intimidated his political detractors and the agents of retrogression, hence, the repeated unsuccessful attempts to throw mud at his sterling performance.

“ISDI, Lagos, is surprised that, as a distinguished Senator who ought to be conversant with the rules of the upper chamber, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan failed to exhaust all internal channels of dispute resolution and instead chose to make uncomplimentary and disrespectful remarks against her leader.

“Indeed, what was the motivation behind her not speaking out on the issue since December 2023 that the incident was alleged to have happened until February 2025, if not that she was pushed by political detractors determined to malign the reputation of Senator Akpabio and undermine the credibility of the Senate under his leadership.”

While Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan has the right to seek redress in court for any perceived wrong-doing, ISDI, Lagos, is of the firm belief that the court will absolve our respected son and Uncommon Leader from any wrong-doing and restore his reputation, which her unfortunate allegation seeks to tarnish.”