Police officers deployed tear gas to prevent supporters of Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan from accessing the National Assembly Complex early Wednesday.
The protesters had converged on the national assembly gate as early as 8 a.m., with the resumption of plenary on the horizon. They held aloft placards bearing inscriptions like ‘Akpabio must go’, ‘Protect women’s rights’, and ‘Protect Natasha at all costs.’
The police personnel, however, wasted little time swooping on them with tear gas canisters.
The crowd has now moved to the Unity Fountain.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, the senator representing Kogi Central, clashed with Senate President Godswill Akpabio over seating arrangements on February 20.
She was thereafter referred to the senate’s disciplinary panel. The senator subsequently filed a N100 billion defamation suit against Akpabio.
Last Friday, Akpoti-Uduaghan accused Akpabio of maligning and punishing her because she refused his sexual advances.
Akpoti-Uduaghan had been invited to appear before the Senate committee on ethics, code of conduct, and public petitions at 2pm today.
Earlier, thousands of pro-Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan protesters had besieged the gate of the National Assembly over allegations of sexual harassment against Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
The protesters, comprising mainly women and men from Kogi Central Senatorial District, led by one of the lawyers to Senator Natasha, Victor Giwa, carried placards, banners, and a national flag.
They called on the Senate Committee on Ethics, Code of Conduct, and Public Petitions, to which Senator Natasha’s alleged misconduct in the Chamber has been referred for a probe, to recuse itself.
According to them, a man cannot be a judge in his case.
They called on Akpabio to resign his position to allow for an unbiased probe of the allegations.
Speaking during the protest, Giwa claimed that his law firm has obtained a court injunction to stop the Senate Committee on Ethics from proceeding with its assignment.
He said that the chairman and members of the committee cannot be expected to dispense Justice without bias seeing that they were appointed by Akpabio.
There was heavy security presence at the gate due to the protest.
