Natasha suspension row deepens as Kingibe disowns committee report…sparks fresh questions on senate procedure

Kingibe says she never saw or signed the report behind Natasha's suspension

Fresh tension has erupted over the six-month suspension of Kogi Central Senator, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, as Senator Ireti Kingibe has publicly distanced herself from the committee report that formed the basis of the disciplinary action, saying she neither saw nor signed it. The development has further stirred controversy around the Senate's handling of the matter, with growing concerns over transparency, procedure and internal consensus in the upper chamber.

Speaking on Arise News on Thursday, Kingibe insisted she was not part of the final review process that produced the report.

I was not part of the report review. I never saw the report that led to Senator Natasha's suspension. I was at a retreat with Senator Adams Oshiomhole when I heard about the report.

— Senator Ireti Kingibe

She explained that while she attended the Committee on Petitions and Public Complaints and signed the attendance register alongside a few other senators, she left the proceedings for a tax reform retreat she considered "more important at the time." Kingibe further disclosed that she had directly informed Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe of her non-involvement in the report's final approval.

I told him clearly that I neither saw nor signed any document relating to Senator Natasha's suspension.

— Senator Ireti Kingibe

Oshiomhole had already raised questions about how the report was concluded

Kingibe's remarks have now appeared to lend weight to earlier concerns raised by Senator Adams Oshiomhole, who had questioned the process that produced the controversial report. Oshiomhole, in an earlier interview with African Independent Television, had hinted that some lawmakers were uncomfortable with how their names appeared on the final committee document, though he stopped short of alleging forgery.

I am not saying anybody forged signatures, but questions were raised about how the report was concluded.

— Senator Adams Oshiomhole

However, the Senate has pushed back strongly against any suggestion of procedural irregularity. Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Senator Yemi Adaramodu, dismissed the concerns, insisting no senator had formally complained about the report on the floor of the chamber.

No senator had raised such concerns before the Senate. If Senator Kingibe had anything against any procedure, she would report it on the floor of the Senate, not to an individual.

— Senator Yemi Adaramodu

He maintained that the Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions Committee followed due process in handling the matter, dismissing any suggestion of coercion or forged signatures.

It is not true that anyone was coerced or that signatures were forged. That has never happened in the Senate and it cannot happen.

— Senator Yemi Adaramodu

Adaramodu further noted that the Senate would not ignore public statements made by lawmakers on the issue, and stressed that the Natasha suspension debate was conducted openly on the Senate floor "in full glare of Nigerians and the international audience," insisting there was "nothing to hide."

We are going to review any statements made. The Senate will take a cursory look at extraneous or intentional comments and take a stand.

— Senator Yemi Adaramodu

Despite the Senate's defence, Kingibe's remarks have reignited debate over internal legislative procedures, raising fresh questions about consensus-building, documentation and accountability in high-stakes disciplinary actions within the National Assembly. As the controversy lingers, political observers say the unfolding exchange may yet force a deeper scrutiny of how sensitive Senate committee reports are compiled, validated and adopted.