It was a further expansion of the landscape for her theatrics. She has been on this episodic drama since February, buffeting public space with contents with almost all of them bearing the trappings of amusing absurdity and offensive regurgitations.
It all started with a simple procedural change of seat. But because she is more preoccupied with the klieg lights, she assumed the new seat would not give her the desired visibility during proceedings at the Senate Chamber. But assumption is the lowest form of knowledge. Encouraged by the assumption and her consuming love for drama, the now suspended Senator stirred an uproar on the floor of the chamber . All entreaties employed to persuade her to acknowledge and submit to the rules of the Senate and exercise the decorum expected of a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and an occupant of the highest legislative assembly in the land met a brick wall . The Kogi born politician has since then continued to conduct herself in manners that can hardly be considered as appropriate public conduct.
Her proclivity for content creation has continued to constrain her to make everything in the lingering saga dramatic. From her first leg of allegation which happened to be sexual harassment against the President of the Senate to the other two legally feeble allegations, it has been jarring noise with neither substance nor evidence . From when she first pushed that obnoxious fabrication to public space, the bidding that she substantiates the allegation with evidence (s) has remained elusive, giving impetus to the argument that it was mere content creation ostensibly weaponized to impugn the reputation of the President of the Senate.
While the illusory search for evidence dragged, the misguided senator launched into another arid area. She alleged that the wife of the Senate President is inhabited with the organs of the late Iniubong Umoren- a philosophy graduate who was gruesomely murdered by one Uduakabasi Frank Akpan while on job hunting.
Of course the family of the deceased reacted virulently to the allegation by laying bare the facts that surrounded the sad incident and exonerated the Akpabios of any complicity in Iniubong’s death including the use of her organs in whatever guise. The sister to the deceased, Ms Ifiok Umoren took a swipe at the suspended senator and deplored her action, describing it as a desecration of the memory of the sister and an injury to the sensibilities of the family.
The allegation of organ harvesting came simultaneously with another allegation which alleged that Senator Akpabio was working in cahoot with the former governor of Kogi State , His Excellency, Yahaya Bello to eliminate Natasha. Since this particular matter is before the court, comments must be done with considerable care and circumspection in order not to fall foul of the law .
Her theatrical show verged to gross absurdity a few days ago when Hon. Justice Binta Nyako delivered a judgement whose interpretation is literal and unambiguous . Lawyers who are dispassionate and objective have weighed in to further elucidate on it and have offered interpretation that is stripped of any ambiguity whatsoever. But Natasha who even appealed the judgement decided to enforce the part she considered favourable to her. This amounts to self help. This is where she enacted the biggest theatrical show.
A few days before the grand finale of her planned showdown, she had announced to the press that she would be going to the National Assembly on July 22 to resume legislative duties . In doing that she ignored the fact that she is on six months suspension. She acted in defiance to the Senate Rule from where the said suspension drew its authority and the courts where matters on the subject are in pendency.
The Senate through its spokesperson, Senator Yemi Adaramodu tried to safe the day with a well publicized press release advising the suspended senator not to come to the Senate as the suspension was still subsisting adding that her claim that the suspension had been quashed by an order of court was untrue as the Senate had not been so served.
But the content creator already had a fixation on her new content. So no truth no matter how incontrovertible and salient could interfere with her determination to push the new content into public space. As part of the cast , she recruited street urchins and reached out to a few low budget jesters who claim to be activists. A certain Aisha Yesefu and Precious Oruche were spotted among the aimless cast .
The mobile theatre arrived at the gate of the National Assembly in vehicles and was denied access. That was what she needed for Act 1 Scene 1 to be consummated . She alighted from the vehicle and walked through the first gate with her cast escorting her amidst militant songs . They walked the stretch of the road which is about 800 meters to the second gate where she was prevented from any further access. After about two hours of a varied dramatic performance behind the shut gate , she addressed the press and walked back to the main gate where her vehicles were waiting. She had finished with the day’s content. And in reckoning with her expectation, she made screaming newspaper headlines the following day but for the wrong reasons.
I have heard many people credit Natasha Akpoti -Uduaghan with courage. I disagree. When one takes a plunge into pitch darkness without submitting to hindsight for guidance , it is foolishness , not courage. Anytime one fails to keep his or her emotions in check, he or she loses a considerable fraction of civilized conduct. That is what we are witnessing in the suspended senator.
The Scripture abhors the proud and warns of the danger ahead for people who are consumed by pride. Many have asked questions on how she got to the highest legislative body in the country. Her conduct is also a seeming albatross to women who are aspiring for political offices. I hope she will one day find the need to show remorse and allow the simple phrase “I am sorry” to issue from her mouth and usher in the peace she so desperately needs but which access is marred by unreasonable pride.
Iniodu is a public affairs analyst.
