Former senator Biodun Olujimi has urged Kogi Central senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan to drop her lawsuit against Godswill Akpabio.
Olujimi, a former minority leader in the senate, stated in an interview on Arise TV on Saturday that she does not want women to seem emotionally unstable.
An adjustment in seating arrangements sparked a contentious dispute between Akpoti-Uduaghan and Senate President Akpabio during the session on February 20.
The Senate sent Akpoti-Uduaghan to the ethics, privileges, and public petitions committee on February 25 for disciplinary action.
But because of a purportedly offensive remark made by the Senate president’s legislative assistant, the Kogi senator sued Akpabio for N100 billion.
Later, Akpoti-Uduaghan claimed that she rebuffed Akpabio’s sexual advances, which sparked her troubles in the Senate.
Olujimi responded to the situation by stating that the Senate rule prohibits a senator from speaking outside of their designated seat.
According to the former lawmaker, the Kogi senator’s desire for her senate inquiry processes to be shown live is “a little overboard.”
She went on to say that the alteration in seating arrangements is a common occurrence in the red chamber and that the altercation between Akpoti-Uduaghan and the senate president shouldn’t have escalated.
Support for the investigation into Akpoti-Uduaghan’s “weighty” accusations against Akpabio was stressed by the former minority leader of the Senate.
She said that the Senate president frequently makes light of things and that Akpabio is a comic.
“I want to say that in the 8th and 9th Senate, we never had anything like that (referring to the allegations), and Senator Akpabio was one of us,” Olujimi said.
“They treated us (female senators) with decorum. We did not have anything like that, and I have not heard anything of such from any other of the remaining senators.
“It is tough for me to be able to take that without proper investigation. There should be an investigation.
“He (Akpabio) jokes a lot. He is fond of making little fun out of everything. He loves to make everything light; when you do that, you become very vulnerable.
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“I saw all that they (referring to male senators) went through as men when I was there. They were all victimised by people from outside. I had to rescue them all of the time.
“The court case, I want to appeal to her to take the case out of court. We don’t want women to look like they are emotionally unstable.
“We need to also be strong enough to face the men. Going to court against a presiding officer is not on. I know she is hurt, but she needs to handle it in a better way. I think that should get out of court as fast as possible.”
