Renowned broadcaster and journalist Oseni Rufai has called for a check on Senator Akpabio, over his frequent habit of silencing female senators and preventing them from expressing their opinions during Senate meetings.
Recall that Parallel Facts reported that Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central Senatorial District, was at the center of a controversy in the Senate on Thursday, as she accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of trying to silence her.
The drama unfolded during a plenary session when Senator Natasha protested the sudden change of her seat without her consent.
Reacting to this development, Rufai in a tweet shared on his official X handle, recalled how Akpabio stoped senator Ireti Kingibe from being heard. However, with the intervention of other male senators, Akpabio granted her permission to speak after insisting she make an apology before proceeding to speak.
His post reads,”Messages from my inbox. Just last month, Emperor Godswill Akpabio stopped Senator Ireti Kingibe of the FCT from being heard. The male senators in the chamber had to approach the senate president and insist that he allow Ireti to speak. Until the male senators approached Akpabio, he would not allow Ireti to be heard.
“Even after he asked Ireti to speak, he insisted that Senator Ireti must apologize first before speaking. This, and his several attempts at silencing Natasha, is the reason Akpabio needs to be checked.
“The senate floor is not your house, and the female senators are not your wives. They do not need to be begged for or interceded for to be heard, they were voted for, in fact, in a freer and fairer election than the senate president would ever dream of. You shall not silence the 3% of women’s representation in the senate,” he added.
Pointing to this incident, Rufai maintained that Akpabio should not silence women representation in the Senate stressing that the Senate is not his house and the female senators not his wife.
