Former Minister of Education and public policy advocate, Dr. Obiageli Ezekwesili, has issued a scathing rebuke of the Federal Government’s handling of the ongoing legal proceedings against Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, calling it a “global embarrassment” that has turned Nigeria into a “laughing stock.”
In a strongly worded statement shared via her official X (formerly Twitter) account, Ezekwesili condemned what she described as the weaponization of state power and the judiciary to intimidate a sitting senator who has publicly accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of sexual harassment and threats to her life.
“The incredulous arraignment of Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan before the FCT High Court by the Federal Government for criminal defamation has made our society a laughing stock in other countries,” Ezekwesili wrote, urging President Bola Tinubu to intervene and halt what she termed “atrocious injustice.”
The former minister criticized the government’s decision to refile the same charges at a different court without notifying the senator or her legal team, calling the move “stealthy” and “perfidious.” She also raised alarm over reports that law enforcement officers were mobilized in large numbers to arrest the senator during the surprise hearing.
Ezekwesili’s remarks have intensified public scrutiny of the case, which has already drawn widespread attention for its implications on judicial independence, gender justice, and democratic accountability.