Nigerian human rights lawyer Maxwell Opara has disclosed his previous legal support for Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan during alleged harassment in her Kogi State gubernatorial campaign by the former governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello.
In an Arise TV interview, Opara explained his stance on her current situation in the Senate. “I defended Sen. Natasha when she claimed she was harassed in Kogi State when she was running for the governorship election, and I condemned that you don’t do that to a woman,” Opara stated. “But on this particular issue, you have a rule in the National Assembly.”
The lawyer emphasized the importance of following established parliamentary procedures: “And the rule says if you have an issue, there is a way you address it. You (Senator Natasha) came into the Senate and discovered that they have changed your seat and you want to make a point. You cannot channel your good case through a wrong means.”
He outlined what he believes would have been the correct approach: “First of all, you go to that seat, then when you now go to that seat, you invoke that Order 10. Because that Order 10 she was quoting that day, you can only invoke it when you are in the right place.”
He also highlighted constitutional provisions regarding Senate leadership authority: “You should also remember that the Order Six in the Constitution has given the Senate President the power to change seats.”
Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan has defended her actions leading to her suspension, insisting that the Senate President should have allowed her to invoke Order 10 of the House rules since it concerned violations of her rights and privileges. She has also claimed that fellow senators had warned her about a “trap” being set through the new seating arrangement before the incident occurred between her and the Senate President.
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