Sen. Ireti Kingibe, representing the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has said she neither saw nor endorsed the report that led to the suspension of Sen. Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, raising fresh questions over the process that culminated in the Kogi Central lawmaker’s suspension.
Kingibe made the disclosure during an interview on Arise Television on Wednesday, saying she was not present when the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions finalised its report.
According to her, although she attended part of the committee proceedings and signed the attendance register, she left before deliberations were concluded to attend a tax reform retreat.
“I never saw the report that led to Natasha’s suspension. I was there with three or four other senators who are members of the committee.
“We attended the Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, signed the attendance register, and I later left for the tax reform retreat, which I considered more important at the time.
“It affects my constituents much more than disciplining a senator, and I figured that the other people who were part of that committee would take care of it,” Kingibe said.
The senator maintained that she could not have approved the committee’s recommendations because the report was never presented to her.
“I even complained to other senators, specifically to Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe. I complained to him very bitterly that I had not seen that report.
“I didn’t see it then. I have not seen it till now,” she added.
Kingibe’s remarks come amid growing controversy surrounding the circumstances that led to Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension from the Senate.
The issue gained renewed attention after Sen. Adams Oshiomhole alleged during a television interview that signatures of some committee members, including Kingibe’s, were attached to the report in a manner that suggested endorsement of findings they did not approve.
However, the Senate leadership has rejected the allegation.
Sen. Yemi Adaramodu, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, dismissed claims of signature manipulation and insisted that the suspension process complied with Senate rules and procedures.
Adaramodu said no senator had officially complained that his or her signature was forged or improperly used in relation to the committee’s report.
He also stated that the matter was debated openly during plenary and that the Senate acted in accordance with its established procedures.
The latest comments by Kingibe are expected to fuel further debate over the handling of the disciplinary process and the broader issues of transparency and due process within the upper legislative chamber.
Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension has remained a subject of public and political discourse since it was announced, with supporters and critics offering differing interpretations of the events that led to the decision.
