Women in Akwa Ibom State today staged a protest against Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan of Kogi Central, in response to the sexual harassment allegati
Women in Akwa Ibom State today staged a protest against Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan of Kogi Central, in response to the sexual harassment allegations she leveled against Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
The protesters, mostly women from across the state, claimed the allegations were part of a deliberate attempt to damage Akpabio’s reputation.
They expressed their refusal to allow another woman to bring down their esteemed leader, who holds the third-highest office in the country.
The demonstration took place on Saturday, March 1, in Uyo Plaza, where the women carried placards bearing messages like, ‘Number 3 man deserves respect, Natasha show some,’ ‘Ijaw women demand respect for our leaders,’ and ‘Respect for husbands is our tradition, Natasha,’ among others.
They called for a public apology from Akpoti-Uduaghan, warning her of potential consequences if she refused.
Grace Mathias, a representative from Essien Udim Local Government, spoke on behalf of the protesters, condemning what she called disrespectful behavior and emphasizing that such actions would not be tolerated against Akwa Ibom elders.
Mathias further threatened that if the allegations persisted, they would seek divine intervention to correct what they perceived as an affront to their community’s values.
“We want Natasha to leave our son alone. Whenever she tries it again, the women will kneel and pray, and heaven will rise against her. She should stop messing up our son, who is well-trained in the ways of the Lord,” Mathias said.
“Our son doesn’t disrespect women; stop harassing our son and disrespecting him; he is so precious to us.
“We, the women of Akwa Ibom, are saying that this should be the first and last time you will be addressing our son in such a disrespectful manner.
“We are out here today to tell you, Natasha, that our son is so precious to us. In this area, we respect our men; we don’t disrespect them, so we want to tell you to stop harassing our son. Our son was trained in the ways of the Lord, and enough is enough.
“If we hear about this again, we will go down on our knees to pray against you, and God Almighty will release the cane, and that cane will flog you.
“No peace for the wicked, and for plotting evil against our son, evil will return to you because you want to bring a bad name to our son. Your plan will not work in the life of our son,” she added.
