Senator representing the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Ireti Kingibe, has said she never saw the report that recommended the six-month suspension of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan of Kogi Central in 2025.
Kingibe made the disclosure on Wednesday during an appearance on Arise Television’s Prime Time.
The FCT senator said she was absent when the report was considered noting she had attended a tax reform retreat with other lawmakers.
“I never saw the report that led to Natasha’s suspension. I was at a retreat. I had earlier stated that I was there with three or four other senators who are members of the committee,” Kingibe said.
She explained that although she attended the Committee on Petitions and Public Complaints meeting and signed the attendance register, she later left for the retreat, which she considered a priority at the time.
“We attended the Committee on Petitions and Public Complaints, signed the attendance register, and I later left for the tax reform retreat, which I considered more important at the time,” she said.
The senator said she later raised concerns with her colleagues after discovering that she had not seen the report before it was presented for consideration.
“I even complained to other senators, specifically to Senator Abaribe. I complained to him very bitterly that I had not seen that report. I didn’t see it then. I have not seen it till now,” she said.
Kingibe’s comments come days after Senator Adams Oshiomhole of Edo North alleged that the signatures of some lawmakers were forged or improperly included in the report recommending Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension.
Oshiomhole, during an interview on AIT, claimed that some senators whose names appeared on the document told him they neither signed the report nor supported its recommendations.