{"id":154249,"date":"2025-03-07T08:55:08","date_gmt":"2025-03-07T07:55:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/uncategorized\/natashas-suspension-stark-reminder-of-challenges-women-face-in-nigeria-activist"},"modified":"2025-03-07T08:55:08","modified_gmt":"2025-03-07T07:55:08","slug":"natashas-suspension-stark-reminder-of-challenges-women-face-in-nigeria-activist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/policy\/natashas-suspension-stark-reminder-of-challenges-women-face-in-nigeria-activist","title":{"rendered":"Natasha\u2019s suspension stark reminder of challenges women face in Nigeria \u2013 Activist"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"color: #ff6600\"><strong>Africa-Press &#8211; Nigeria. <\/strong><\/span>The suspension of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan for six months from the Nigerian Senate has been described as a reminder of the challenges women face in Nigeria.<\/p>\n<p>Her suspension is also said to have been done hastily, without a transparent investigation.<\/p>\n<p> Senator Natasha had petitioned the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions over alleged sexual harassment by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.<\/p>\n<p>Reacting, Comrade Jacob Pwakim Choji, Immediate Past Assistant Secretary, Women Peace and Security Network, Plateau State, said, \u201cThe case of Senator Natasha and the Senate President is a stark reminder of the challenges women face in Nigeria, whether in leadership roles traditionally dominated by men, in seeking justice for abuses, or in advocating for protection, equity, and career advancement.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>According to him, \u201cOrdinarily, we would refrain from taking sides, but the hasty manner in which the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions recommended her six-month suspension raises serious concerns.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is not just about one senator it is about the systemic barriers that continue to suppress women\u2019s voices in leadership and victimise those who seek justice.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cViolating Senate rules should not be considered more serious than allegations of sexual harassment involving the third-highest-ranking official in Nigeria. If anything, a transparent investigation into the harassment claims should have taken precedence\u201d, he maintained.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Choji, who was the immediate past chairman of Plateau Peace Practitioners Network further asked, \u201cWhy was Senator Natasha suspended so hastily without a transparent investigation? What was the urgency? The lack of openness raises serious suspicions\u2014 what is being hidden?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI saw the enthusiasm with which the Senate President and his allies declared that the senator \u2018ceases to be\u2019 a member of the Senate.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf our laws allow such unchecked power, then we must demand urgent constitutional reforms to prevent legislative overreach\u2014reforms that protect against abuses by those who may weaponise the law against their targets, whether they are sexual predators, ethnic jingoists, or male chauvinists.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo me, this is a clear case of autocracy, oppression, concealment, and abuse of power. In fact, this raises a bigger question\u2014do we even need a bicameral legislature?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMany senators appear to be nothing more than \u2018yes or no\u2019 figures, occupying public office for personal enrichment.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere are the quality debates? What meaningful contributions have they made? I even doubt whether my senator has ever spoken on the floor.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo those both men and women who are quick to dismiss Senator Natasha\u2019s reaction as \u2018dramatic,\u2019 let\u2019s be clear: women have every right to react when their privacy is invaded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen a woman openly challenges a superior in a space known for political correctness, it often means a serious line has been crossed. Let\u2019s not be selective in our outrage.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere are the women-led organisations, gender activists, feminists, the so-called HeForShe movement, the Bring Back Our Girls advocates, democracy advocates, legal practitioners, and other civil society organisations?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is work to be done; unless, of course, all our activism is just lip service or a mere quest for popularity and attention.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhere are the loud voices that claim to champion justice? Is silence now the price of political convenience simply because a powerful man is involved or because he belongs to your political party? Activism should be undiluted, not selective.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is not just a gender issue; it is a test of our democracy. Where are the legal experts, civil society groups, and those who claim to stand for justice and accountability?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is not just about Senator Natasha or even about the Nigerian Senate; it is about the rights and dignity of every Nigerian both men and women\u201d, he stressed.<\/p>\n<p><strong>For More News And Analysis About <span style=\"color: #ff6600\">Nigeria<\/span> Follow <span style=\"color: #ff6600\">Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Africa-Press &#8211; Nigeria. The suspension of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan for six months from the Nigerian Senate has been described as a reminder of the challenges women face in Nigeria. Her suspension is also said to have been done hastily, without a transparent investigation. Senator Natasha had petitioned the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":154248,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,14],"tags":[11955,254],"class_list":["post-154249","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-natasha","tag-nigeria"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.1 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Natasha\u2019s suspension stark reminder of challenges women face in Nigeria \u2013 Activist - Nigeria<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/uncategorized\/natashas-suspension-stark-reminder-of-challenges-women-face-in-nigeria-activist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Natasha\u2019s suspension stark reminder of challenges women face in Nigeria \u2013 Activist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Africa-Press &#8211; Nigeria. The suspension of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan for six months from the Nigerian Senate has been described as a reminder of the challenges women face in Nigeria. Her suspension is also said to have been done hastily, without a transparent investigation. Senator Natasha had petitioned the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/uncategorized\/natashas-suspension-stark-reminder-of-challenges-women-face-in-nigeria-activist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Nigeria\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-03-07T07:55:08+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/uncategorized\/natashas-suspension-stark-reminder-of-challenges-women-face-in-nigeria-activist#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/uncategorized\/natashas-suspension-stark-reminder-of-challenges-women-face-in-nigeria-activist\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Natasha\u2019s suspension stark reminder of challenges women face in Nigeria \u2013 Activist\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-03-07T07:55:08+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/uncategorized\/natashas-suspension-stark-reminder-of-challenges-women-face-in-nigeria-activist\"},\"wordCount\":632,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/uncategorized\/natashas-suspension-stark-reminder-of-challenges-women-face-in-nigeria-activist#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/sites\/3\/2025\/03\/sm_1741325764.588916.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Natasha\",\"Nigeria\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"Policy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/uncategorized\/natashas-suspension-stark-reminder-of-challenges-women-face-in-nigeria-activist#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/uncategorized\/natashas-suspension-stark-reminder-of-challenges-women-face-in-nigeria-activist\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/nigeria\/uncategorized\/natashas-suspension-stark-reminder-of-challenges-women-face-in-nigeria-activist\",\"name\":\"Natasha\u2019s suspension stark reminder of challenges women face in Nigeria \u2013 Activist - 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