In response to Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan’s sexual harassment allegation, former presidential adviser and senator Florence Ita-Giwa said that once elected, women in the Senate are immune from sexual harassment.
Because she allegedly turned down his sexual approaches, Akpoti-Uduaghan recently accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of impeding her attempts to introduce resolutions regarding the Ajaokuta Steel Company in Kogi State.
The assertion was made in a live interview on Arise TV on March 4, 2025.
Cross-River South Senatorial District representative Ita-Giwa responded by denouncing the idea that female parliamentarians would experience sexual harassment after being elected.
She claimed that a woman is no longer vulnerable after running for and winning a Senate seat since she has overcome such experiences.
“By the time you contest elections and get to the Senate, you have passed that stage of your life of being sexually harassed,” Ita-Giwa said. “You go there to serve, and you are all equal in that place.”
Ita-Giwa also suggested that complaining about sexual harassment in the Senate is a sign of weakness. “It shows weakness; you don’t allow it. It (sexual harassment) cannot happen in the Senate,” she added.
Ita-Giwa emphasized that women in politics should be viewed as equal to males, even though she made it clear that she was not accusing Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan of lying.
She underlined that winning a Senate seat is a difficult task and should enable female senators to resist harassment in any way.
“I am not saying the lady is lying, but when you get to the Senate, you’re there as a person. You’re not there as a woman,” Ita-Giwa remarked.
Additionally, Ita-Giwa called it “the worst sign of weakness” and said that it is ineffective for female senators to openly accuse their male colleagues of harassment.
Her remarks have provoked a contentious discussion about how women are treated in Nigerian politics, with many raising concerns about the ramifications for future allegations of sexual assault in the political sphere.
