Senate President Godswill Akpabio has given new insight into why he instituted a forty-billion-naira defamation suit against Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan. According to a statement from his media office, the action was prompted by what he described as the senator’s continued use of social media to make allegations that he insists are false and damaging.

Suit was filed months ago, Akpabio insists

Akpabio said the case was not newly filed, contrary to Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan’s recent claim. According to him, the suit had been before the court for more than three months, but its progress was slowed by procedural delays and difficulties in serving the Kogi lawmaker with the court documents.

The statement explained that the court bailiff made several attempts to deliver the summons personally, but each effort reportedly failed because Akpoti-Uduaghan allegedly avoided service. The court later granted permission for substituted service in November.

“The claim that the matter was just filed is false and misleading,” the statement said. “The facts are already before the court and are easily verifiable.”

Background to the dispute

The disagreement between both senators intensified after Akpoti-Uduaghan publicly accused the Senate President of sexual misconduct. According to Punch and other Nigerian media outlets, those allegations were neither proven before the Senate Committee nor presented with credible evidence to any official body.

Akpabio said the repeated accusations, which he described as grave and unsubstantiated, threatened his reputation and left him with no choice but to seek legal redress as provided under the Constitution.

He added that the controversy had been amplified by the senator’s online supporters, which he argued created confusion rather than presenting facts.

Social media criticism not a substitute for evidence, Akpabio says

The Senate President’s media office maintained that public disputes should be resolved through legal processes, not social media engagements. It accused Akpoti-Uduaghan of promoting “staged outrage” to sway public opinion, noting that similar tactics were used during her six-month suspension from the Senate earlier in the year.

“That suspension was a lawful disciplinary action, yet she attempted to delegitimise it through online agitation before ultimately serving it in full,” the statement said.

According to Akpabio, the current case presents an opportunity for the senator to defend her allegations before a competent court and provide whatever evidence she claims to have.

“The law operates on proof and due process. It is not driven by sentiment or emotion. Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan is encouraged to instruct her lawyers properly, file her defence, and lay her evidence before the court,” the statement added.

Legal analysts noted that the case could become one of the most closely watched political defamation suits in recent years, especially given the rising trend of high-profile disputes playing out on social media before reaching the courts.