‘Sexual harassment’: Dead men have no tales — Natasha

Senator representing Kogi Central Senatorial District in Kogi state, Sen. Natasha Akpoti, has said that dead men cannot tell their stories in the midst of serious political controversy as she is embroiled into over the allegation of sexual harassment and plot to kill her.

Natasha made this statement during an interview on Channels TV on Thursday. 

She maintained her allegation, that there was a plot to kill her in her home state of Kogi state but she alerted the inspector General of police in a petition and also sent him a text message.

“Let’s ask the Senate President, why did he withdraw my security, if not to make me vulnerable to attacks? I have been a high-profile, vulnerable individual because of the nature of politics I have had.

“I have always had my security, okay? So, stripping me of my security simply because I’m suspended illegally, he just positioned me for attacks, and I knew immediately what happened.

“I was suspended on the 6th day of March, right? And a week after, which was the 14th, a week and a few days after, when he met with Yahaya Bello, he then emphasized that I should be killed, that I should be killed in Kogi.

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“And that was one of the reasons why I did not go home on time. I delayed going home because I needed to put some measures on the ground. I did write a letter to the Inspector General of Police, and I sent a copy to his WhatsApp. I forwarded the copy to his WhatsApp, he’s not responded to that yet.

“But again, I’ve spoken on the phone to a number of persons in the security circle as well, I did notify them. And you see, this is Nigeria.

“We have had a number of political murders that usually are swept under the carpet, no investigation done.

“What is important to me is to stay alive, because dead men tell no tales. And God forbid, if I had not come out, and if I had not, if I don’t speak about this, and something happens, and they succeed in their plan, who’s going to get justice for me?” she asked.

The senator who said her entry to Kogi state by helicopter was entirely her husband’s idea given the state government directive to stall her home coming for Sallah celebration with her constituents maintained that the she broke no law using her compound to meet her people.

“Now, back to the helicopter. That was my husband’s idea. It was a last-minute thing. I wanted to celebrate Sallah with my constituents, which I always do, even before I became a senator.

“I usually send out some materials and some grains for them to share and the last few days of Sallah, I do spend time with them. But in the wake of this events, I couldn’t go earlier, but I said, this very last day of the holiday, I should be with them.

“And then we sent out notifications, just as the notifications went out, we read the press release from the state government by Governor Ododo through the Commissioner of Information, Kingsley Fawo, mentioning that there was a ban on gatherings, rallies, whether social, religious, or political.

“The ban included “Convoys getting into the state, ban on fishing activities, and all sorts of water activities. We just sat there looking at it. I knew I was the target. Come on. Relatively, Kogi state has been quite peaceful, so there is no security concerns.

“We were actually wondering where that came from but I knew I was the target. I have seen the prohibition of fishing activities and water activities and the ban of convoys into, and also a list of checkpoints that suddenly propped up, you know, barring entrance into my senatorial district. That is, Kogi, Auchi, to Okene, Abuja, Lokoja, Okene Road, Akure, Ikare access into my senatorial district, like, all the roads were barricaded.

“I knew that, there was going to be trouble. I was like we can actually get a helicopter to land us right into our compound, because we do own the land opposite our village home. And that is how we got in.

“And I think with that move, we broke no law. And the people gathered right in my compound. The road you see us walking through, I constructed that road. So that’s not the government road or facility. So I broke no law. I’m a good citizen of Nigeria, a law-abiding one at that,” Natasha maintained.

She said she was indeed shock that the move to recall her was facilitated by the state government supported by the governor Ahmed Usman Ododo.  Whom had earlier rejected the plot to recall her at the behest of the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio whom she has accused of sexual harassments

she continued, “The primary petitioners, 14 of them that submitted the first cover letter, were all signed by special advisors to Governor Dodo himself. He gave approval. They are all his staff, all of them. Governor Dodo is the APC leader in the state.

“And four of the signatures there, the primary signatures supporting the first petition, the cover letter, were all his staff. They are all his aides.

“According to Senator Natasha, “You know, there’s nothing that happens around the Senate that one does not get to know, either immediately or the day after. I don’t deal with just rumors. I make sure I verify. And I do have my primary sources.”

The Kogi Central Senator said that her suspension does not remove her constitutional guaranteed status as a Senator of federal republic of Nigeria emphasizing that her suspension is illegal and remained so.

She continued, “The fact that I am suspended illegally does not remove my legitimacy as a senator. I remain a senator. And at every gathering, I owe my people a duty to educate them on politics and their expectations with regards to the situations we face, which was the recall.”

She maintained that if the recall process was subject to thorough scrutiny, it may not produce over 500 genuine signature in the register.

 Natasha stated, “I think it should have been discarded on the first go. But again, what I am going to say is, even though INEC did count 208 signatures, I bet you, if they had gone into the second stage, was it the third stage? The verification stage, they would have struggled to even have 500 people come out to attest to signing that.”

The embattled senator said “I am not worried, because I trust my people, and my people connect with me. They resonate with the idea that I protect their interest and they are actually very happy with the manner in which I have represented them.

“My election was one that was apolitical. It was not just PDP that voted me. It was a number of even the APC card carrying-members and other parties that voted for me”, the senator said.

 

NIGERIAN TRIBUNE