Senate President Akpabio, Ex-Governor Yahaya Bello to Appear as Witnesses in Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan’s Defamation Trial
Senate President Godswill Akpabio and former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello are scheduled to testify as key witnesses in the ongoing defamation case against suspended Kogi Central lawmaker, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan. The trial is being held at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Abuja.
The Federal Government is prosecuting Akpoti-Uduaghan over alleged defamatory statements she made during a live television appearance. The case, filed on May 16, 2025, invokes Section 391 of the Penal Code, CAP 89, Laws of the Federation, 1990, accusing the senator of making harmful allegations with knowledge or reason to believe they would damage the reputation of Akpabio and Bello. The alleged offence carries penalties under Section 392 of the same code.
According to the charges, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan claimed during the TV programme that Akpabio and Bello conspired to have her assassinated. She alleged that Akpabio deliberately withdrew her security detail to expose her to potential harm and instructed that she be killed in Kogi State. The prosecution argues that these remarks were made with malicious intent to defame the two high-profile politicians.
In one of the charges, the government quoted the senator as saying: “It was part of the meeting, the discussions that Akpab…”
