Senator Dickson distances self from Natasha’s Suspension, leads opposition lawmakers on solidarity visit

Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan was suspended for six months on Thursday after the Senate adopted the report of the Committee on Ethics, Code of Conduct, Privileges, and Public Petitions.

Her suspension followed a disagreement with Senate President Godswill Akpabio over seating arrangements in the Red Chamber. The controversy escalated days later when she accused Akpabio of sexual harassment and other misconduct during a live television interview.

Senator Dickson, like Natasha, is a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The former governor shared fresh details about how the decision to suspend Akpoti-Uduaghan was reached. Writing on his verified Facebook page after leading a group of opposition Senators on a visit to the embattled lawmaker and her husband, Chief Emmanuel Oritsejolomi Uduaghan, in their Abuja home, Dickson explained that he was absent from the Senate proceedings due to his participation in a workshop on Tax Reform Bills.

“The public may recall that, for the past three days, I was attending the three-day workshop on the Tax Reform Bills, which started on Wednesday, 5th of March, and ended this evening, Friday, 7th of March. This is why I was not available yesterday to sit as a member of the Committee on Ethics, Code of Conduct, Privileges, and Public Petitions in respect of the issues concerning our colleague, Distinguished Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension, having been assured by the Committee Chairman that the hearing would hold on Wednesday, the 11th of March, for which notices had already been issued. I was not notified of the emergency sitting yesterday,” Dickson wrote.

He further clarified that his absence from the plenary session on the day of Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension was due to his engagement with colleagues on the Tax Reform Bills.
“As a result of the strong views I had already canvassed, my colleagues and I were working on the Tax Reform Bills yesterday and, as such, was unable to join the plenary sitting which considered the report of the Ethics Committee that deliberated and approved the suspension,” he added.

Dickson said that after completing the retreat, he led a delegation of opposition Senators to visit Akpoti-Uduaghan and her husband, expressing solidarity and discussing possible resolutions.
“Senators, as humans, have their low and high moments, and it is a tradition for Senators to support each other during these moments. We offered words of encouragement, prayers, and advice on a quick resolution of the issues surrounding her suspension. Having heard more from her and her husband for the first time, I will discuss with other colleagues on how to intervene and engage with the leadership of the Senate to resolve the issues as soon as possible,” he stated.

Meanwhile, the federal government has promised to step in on the matter.
“We’re engaging all the stakeholders to ensure that they temper justice with mercy,” the Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs Iman Suleiman-Ibrahim, told State House correspondents during the Meet-the-Press Programme at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Friday.