Immigration reacts as Sen. Akpoti-Uduaghan blames Akpabio for passport seizure at Abuja airport

The Senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of orchestrating another attempt to frustrate her foreign trip after immigration officials briefly seized her international passport at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on Tuesday.

In a live video shared on her Facebook page, the lawmaker was seen confronting immigration officers who allegedly withheld her passport, preventing her from boarding her flight. She described the action as an unlawful restriction of movement and a violation of her constitutional rights.

“Fellow Nigerians, good morning. This is Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan. Having completed the celebration of my second year in office, I decided to take a week off. I’m at the airport here, and my passport is being withheld again,” she said in the video.

She claimed that during a similar incident in the past, an immigration officer told her the directive came from Senate President Godswill Akpabio.

“I have committed no offense, and there is no court order to withhold my passport or deny me travel. The last time this happened, the officer in charge said Senate President Godswill Akpabio instructed them to stop me because he claimed I damage the country’s image whenever I travel and grant interviews to international media,” she alleged.

Turning to the immigration officers, Akpoti-Uduaghan demanded her passport’s release: “You have no right to withhold my passport. You have no right to deny me entrance or exit into my country. I have not committed any offense and this must stop.”

The Tuesday confrontation marks the second time the senator’s travel plans have been disrupted at the Abuja airport, reviving her longstanding feud with Akpabio.

Akpoti-Uduaghan, one of the Senate’s most outspoken critics of the leadership, has repeatedly accused Akpabio of political intimidation and marginalisation. Earlier this year, she accused him of sexual harassment and discrimination against female lawmakers, allegations that led to her suspension from the Senate for six months.

She also had public clashes with Akpabio during plenary sessions, accusing him of running the Senate in an “undemocratic” manner and manipulating the allocation of constituency projects and committee positions.

Tuesday’s airport incident has since triggered outrage among her supporters and human rights advocates, who are demanding a formal explanation from the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) and the Senate leadership.

In a brief statement to journalists, the Service’s Public Relations Officer, Mr. Akinsola Akinlabi, downplayed the matter, describing it as “a routine check.”

“It was a routine check, and she has been allowed to travel. It was an exercise that didn’t even take long,” Akinlabi said.

When asked if the action was carried out on Akpabio’s directive, he dismissed the suggestion: “Of course not. What concerns immigration with National Assembly matters?”

Efforts to reach Akpabio’s spokesperson, Mr. Eseme Eyiboh, for comments were unsuccessful as he neither picked up calls nor responded to messages.

Akpoti-Uduaghan later confirmed that her passport was eventually returned and she was allowed to continue her journey, but she described the repeated incidents as harassment aimed at silencing her.

The senator’s latest ordeal comes barely two weeks after she regained access to her Senate office, months after her suspension ended in September.

She had been suspended on March 6, 2025, following a heated confrontation with Akpabio over her seat reallocation during plenary. Despite the controversy, she has since resumed full legislative duties, including sponsoring the Criminal Code (Amendment) Bill 2025 last week.

Although immigration authorities have dismissed the airport drama as a routine procedure, the episode has reignited public debate about the alleged use of state institutions to intimidate dissenting lawmakers and deepened scrutiny of the frosty relationship between Akpoti-Uduaghan and the Senate leadership.