A mild drama erupted in the Senate on Thursday as Senate President Godswill Akpabio ordered the Sergeant-at-Arms to remove Senator Natasha Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central, from the chamber.
The drama started after a report by Senate Chief Whip Mohammed Monguno, who informed the Senate that Senator Natasha had refused to relocate to a new seat assigned to her.
The Chief whip added that the reassignment was intended to close gaps left by two defecting opposition senators who joined the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) from the minority party.
Before Monguno could conclude his point, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan engaged in a heated exchange, demanding explanations for the sudden change of her seat.
The situation escalated into a shouting match, prompting the intervention of the Sergeant-At-Arms, who attempted to restore order.
Despite efforts by the Senate President to calm tensions, the female Senator remained defiant, insisting on a justification for the change.
At that point, Senate President Akpabio became furious and ordered the Sergeant-At-Arms to take Natasha out of the chamber.
But the Kogi Central Senator remained adamant, accusing Akpabio of deliberate silencing of her voice.
“I don’t care if I am silenced. I am not afraid of you. You have denied me my privilege,” she shouted at the Senate President.
The chaos persisted until the public address systems were temporarily shut down, after which normalcy was restored, allowing proceedings to continue.
