Shaibu: Senate Seating Dispute Not a Gender Issue

Shaibu: Senate Seating Dispute Not a Gender Issue

By Fly Cable News

Former Deputy Governor of Edo State, Philip Shaibu, has weighed in on the controversy between Senators Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan and Senate President Godswill Akpabio, stating that the issue should not be framed as a gender matter.

Speaking on Sunrise Daily, a Channels Television programme, on Wednesday, Shaibu emphasized that the allocation of seats and offices in the National Assembly is a privilege, not a right, and must be secured through lobbying.

Shaibu, who previously represented Etsako Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives and served eight years in the Edo State House of Assembly, explained that lobbying plays a crucial role in securing favorable seating and office allocations.

“Interestingly, Natasha is my friend, and Senator Akpabio, the President of the Senate, is my political leader,” he noted.

“There are established rules in the House. When I was in the National Assembly, it was the leadership’s prerogative to assign offices and seats. Everything in the legislature requires lobbying. As a former two-term member of the Edo State House of Assembly, I quickly learned that securing a good office in Abuja required immediate lobbying,” he added.

The dispute arose on February 20, 2025, when Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central Senatorial District, rejected her assigned seat and challenged Akpabio’s directive. She has since accused him of harassment and filed a N100 billion defamation lawsuit against him. The Senate, in response, referred her case to the disciplinary committee.

This is not the first public disagreement between the two. In July 2024, Akpabio had apologized to Akpoti-Uduaghan following a controversial nightclub-related comment about her.