My invitation to Akpabio was procedural – Senator Natasha clarifies

Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan (PDP, Kogi Central) has moved to dispel speculations surrounding her letter inviting Senate President Godswill Akpabio and other senators to the inauguration of projects marking her second anniversary in the Senate.

She clarified that the invitation was an act of procedural courtesy, not a political olive branch.

The Senator’s clarification follows interpretations after her letter was read by the Senate President during Thursday’s plenary.

The letter invited fellow distinguished senators to join her for the project inauguration in Kogi State.

Reacting strongly to suggestions that the invitation represented a move toward reconciliation or an olive branch, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan took to her social media handles to express her displeasure.

“Announcement by protocol don turn to ‘Olive Branch, Reconciliation’. If I didn’t invite you all to ‘see what the Lord has done in my life’, you’d say I’m ignoring the institution. Make una no kuku come,” she wrote.

She stressed that writing to the Senate through the presiding officer was customary and standard practice for announcing such events in the National Assembly.

“As is customary for announcements of such nature, I wrote to the Senate through the presiding officer for the Senate President to read on the floor. I didn’t want it to seem like I was celebrating in isolation… That notification was part of the process,” she stated.

The Senator used the occasion to reflect on her tumultuous first two years in office, noting that six months of her tenure were lost to suspension from legislative functions for an alleged breach of Senate rules.

She also recalled a prior attempt to declare her seat vacant, saying, “Some months ago, there was a plan to declare my seat vacant, but God saved me.”

Despite the challenges, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan reaffirmed her commitment to her constituents, stating, “Though I lost six months, I ensured my people didn’t feel deprived of the benefits of representation. I worked extra hard to bring the dividends of democracy to them.”