The Senate has fired back at Senator Adams Oshiomhole, describing his recent allegations of signature forgery regarding the suspension of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan as mischievous and entirely unfounded.
Senate Spokesperson, Yemi Adaramodu, dismissed the claims during an interview, insisting that the upper legislative chamber operates with absolute transparency and strictly within its established rules.
The rebuttal comes after Oshiomhole alleged in a televised interview that at least three senators privately confessed their signatures were improperly appended to the committee report that recommended the suspension.
In response to the public outburst, Adaramodu revealed that the Senate will formally probe Oshiomhole’s remarks to determine their intent and impact. “We are going to review any statements made by him. The Senate will take a cursory look at either extraneous, spontaneous, or intentional comments from any senator appropriately,” the spokesperson stated.
He emphasized that the leadership will thoroughly investigate the matter before taking a definitive, public stance on the allegations raised by the former Edo State governor.
Defending the disciplinary action against Akpoti-Uduaghan, the Senate maintained that the Kogi Central lawmaker was sanctioned purely for breaching parliamentary regulations during an open process.
Adaramodu explained that the issue was transparently debated at plenary before being referred to the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions.
He added that Akpoti-Uduaghan was given a fair hearing but voluntarily chose not to avail herself of the opportunity to appear before the panel to defend her actions.
The Senate spokesperson vehemently rejected Oshiomhole’s claim that signatures were manipulated to influence the decision, labeling the accusation a belated afterthought.
He pointed out that the incident occurred over a year ago, making the sudden allegations highly suspicious. “If any senator believed that an infraction had been committed against him or her, that senator would have raised the matter on the floor,” Adaramodu said, adding that Oshiomhole is not an advocate for other lawmakers and that the Senate leadership would never forge signatures.
Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan was handed a six-month suspension in March 2025 following a heated clash with Senate President Godswill Akpabio, an incident the chamber officially categorized as “gross misconduct and unruly behaviour.”
Reaffirming that the Senate remains orderly and bound by its rules, Adaramodu concluded that the entire suspension proceedings were conducted in the full glare of the media and the international audience, leaving absolutely nothing to hide.
