The Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama, Abuja, has granted bail to suspended Senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, in the sum of ₦50 million, following her arraignment on a three-count charge of criminal defamation.
Justice Chizoba Orji, in her ruling on Thursday, also ordered that the surety must be a person of reasonable integrity residing within the FCT and own landed property within Abuja Municipal Area Council.
Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan was docked after the Attorney General of the Federation filed charges accusing her of making “false and damaging statements” against Senate President Godswill Akpabio and former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello.
The Federal Government alleged that during a live appearance on Politics Today, a Channels Television programme aired on April 3, 2025, the senator made comments it described as “reckless and defamatory,” claiming there was a plot to assassinate her involving both Akpabio and Bello.
She was quoted in the charge as saying:
“Let’s ask the Senate President, why in the first instance did he withdraw my security, if not to make me vulnerable to attacks? He then emphasised that I should be killed, but I should be killed in Kogi.”
In another segment, Akpoti-Uduaghan allegedly said:
“It was part of the meeting, the discussions that Akpabio had with Yahaya Bello that night, to eliminate me… You knew or had reason to believe that such imputations would harm the reputation of Yahaya Adoza Bello.”
She is also accused of making another grave allegation in a phone conversation with Sandra C. Duru on March 27, 2025, claiming a woman’s organs were harvested and used for Senator Akpabio’s ailing wife:
“That girl that was killed… her organs were actually used for the wife, because the wife was really ill.”
The prosecution insists that the senator knew the statements were capable of damaging reputations and inciting public outrage.
The Senate President and Bello are among five witnesses lined up to testify against the senator.
Meanwhile, the arraignment, earlier scheduled for June 3, had been postponed, but the matter is now progressing with the granting of bail and official commencement of trial.
A civil society coalition under the banner Coalition for Ethical Governance and Justice (CEGJ) has raised concerns over the timing and political undertone of the charges.
Spokesperson for the group, Aisha Lawal, said in a statement on Thursday:
“We are deeply concerned about the apparent politicization of the judiciary in this matter. Defamation is a serious allegation, but it must not be used as a tool for silencing dissent. The independence of our courts must be preserved.”
She warned against turning the judiciary into a battlefield for political vendettas, noting that the judiciary should remain the last hope of the common man, not a tool for settling scores.
“We urge the judiciary to resist any pressure from political forces and ensure that the rule of law, not political convenience, guides this trial,” she added.
