Abuja: The Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development has announced its intention to mediate a resolution between Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan (PDP/Kogi Central) and Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio. This development comes in the wake of Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension from the Senate for six months following allegations of sexual harassment.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, the Minister, Hajia Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, shared these plans while addressing State House Correspondents during a Meet-the-Press meeting. The Minister expressed regret over the incident, emphasizing that it was an unfortunate occurrence that should have been avoided. She reiterated the Ministry’s commitment to fostering peace and collaboration among lawmakers, especially given the dwindling number of female senators.
Sulaiman-Ibrahim highlighted the importance of maintaining and increasing female representation in the Senate and the House of Representatives. She underscored the Ministry’s strategy of engaging stake
holders to ensure that justice is tempered with mercy. Her remarks were made in the context of her visit to the National Assembly on Thursday, where International Women’s Day was observed.
The Minister noted that the President of the Senate had expressed willingness to broker peace, and the Ministry plans to act as an intermediary to facilitate reconciliation between the involved parties. She also stressed the continuous effort to sensitize women to work collaboratively with their male counterparts for the betterment of legislative processes.