Omotayo Adigun
Suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has initiated legal action against her colleague, Senator Onyekachi Nwaebonyi, demanding N5 billion in damages for alleged defamation. The lawsuit stems from remarks Senator Nwaebonyi purportedly made during a national television interview.
Filed at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) through her legal team led by Senior Advocate of Nigeria, M. J. Numa, the suit contends that Senator Nwaebonyi made false and malicious statements intended to tarnish Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan’s reputation.
The court documents, marked CV/1259/25, detail the alleged defamatory incident which occurred on March 6, 2025, during Senator Nwaebonyi’s appearance on Channels Television’s “Sunrise Daily” program.
According to the claimant, Senator Nwaebonyi, who represents Ebonyi North Central and serves as the Senate’s Deputy Chief Whip, referred to her as a “gold digger,” a “habitual liar,” and a “habitual blackmailer” without any lawful justification.
The suit further alleges that Nwaebonyi falsely claimed Akpoti-Uduaghan has six children from different men and asserted that her husband, Chief Emmanuel Uduaghan, married her under duress.
Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan argues these statements, broadcast nationally and subsequently shared across various online platforms, severely damaged her reputation, credibility, and public perception, causing significant personal distress and embarrassment.
The suit interprets the alleged statements as portraying her as an extortionist, someone who uses compromising information for gain, forms relationships for material benefit, is untruthful, and employs coercion.
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The claimant maintains that Senator Nwaebonyi deliberately made these allegedly false statements to discredit her, potentially to justify her ongoing six-month suspension from the Senate. The suit also points out Nwaebonyi’s position as a member of the Senate Committee on Ethics, Code of Conduct, and Public Petitions, suggesting his statements were intended to prejudice the public against her pending petition before the Senate.
Asserting that she inspires women in politics rather than hindering them, Akpoti-Uduaghan described the characterization regarding her children as “baseless, malicious, and indeed reckless.”
Consequently, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan is seeking several remedies from the court. These include N5 billion in aggravated and exemplary damages for reputational harm and emotional distress, a perpetual injunction preventing Senator Nwaebonyi or his associates from publishing further defamatory statements about her, and a court order compelling retraction and apology.
Specifically, she requests the retraction be made on the same platforms where the alleged defamation occurred (Channels TV and online media) and that an unreserved apology be published in at least two national newspapers (print and electronic) within seven days of the judgment.
Additionally, she seeks post-judgment interest at a rate of 10% per annum on any awarded sum until fully paid.
No date has yet been scheduled for the hearing of the case.