A few hours ago, the curtain finally fell at the Senate. It signified the end to one of the acts in the long scene of the drama Nigerians had been regaled with in the last one week. It came with the gavel sounding on the fate of Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, the Senator representing Kogi Central Senatorial District.
Of course, the end of this particular scene would only surprise the non-initiates. A passive observer, a fresh inductee or even a complete political imbecile would have predicted what would be the eventual fate of the Senator, one of the four female lawmakers in 10th Senate.
In the afternoon of Thursday, March 6, the Senate handed her a set of unsalvoury package, relying on the recommendations reached earlier in the day and provided by the members by the Nada Imesuen Committee on Ethics, Privileges, Code of Conducts and Public Relations.
The package: She would be stripped totally of her status as Senator for six months, including being suspended from plenary, her office being fastened, loss of all salaries and allowances for her and her aides, not getting close anywhere within the precincts of the National Assembly and barring her from embarking on foreign trips as a Senator.
Search
WhirlWind News
Editorial
Akpabio-gate: Making sense of the Senate drama!
Published
6 hours ago on
March 7, 2025
By
Whirlwindnews
A few hours ago, the curtain finally fell at the Senate. It signified the end to one of the acts in the long scene of the drama Nigerians had been regaled with in the last one week. It came with the gavel sounding on the fate of Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, the Senator representing Kogi Central Senatorial District.
Of course, the end of this particular scene would only surprise the non-initiates. A passive observer, a fresh inductee or even a complete political imbecile would have predicted what would be the eventual fate of the Senator, one of the four female lawmakers in 10th Senate.
In the afternoon of Thursday, March 6, the Senate handed her a set of unsalvoury package, relying on the recommendations reached earlier in the day and provided by the members by the Nada Imesuen Committee on Ethics, Privileges, Code of Conducts and Public Relations.
The package: She would be stripped totally of her status as Senator for six months, including being suspended from plenary, her office being fastened, loss of all salaries and allowances for her and her aides, not getting close anywhere within the precincts of the National Assembly and barring her from embarking on foreign trips as a Senator.
Advertisement
Nobody would have predicted otherwise, except for the totally bereft in the politics of the land. At least, there were about five previous cases within the chambers since 1999 when Nigeria returned to civilian rule to guide anyone. It was obvious that Natasha would suffer the fate of Joseph Waku, Arthur Nzeribe, Ovie Omo-Agege, Ali Ndume, and Abdul Ningi, who had all tasted the same bitter pill.
What was probably left to conjecture was not predicting beforehand the scenes in-between that would garnish the drama side of the entire saga. That came with Natasha stretching the show beyond the confines of the Senate Chambers.
On Friday, February 28, 2025, she used her appearance on The Morning Show, a breakfast programme on ARISE NEWS, a popular Nigerian television network to regale the whole world with some salacious tales of how Godswill Akpabio, President of the Senate of Nigeria and Chairman of the National Assembly, had been labouring strenuously to lure her into his bed.
Now, any ear that heard such an earth-shaking accusation, especially the full details of the various attempts of sex-baiting as narrated by the Kogi Senator, would expect that the political firmament in Nigeria would come to an instant halt. All over the saner climes, everything else in government circle is supposed to take the backstage from that moment.
But that is the difference – most certainly – the tragedy. In those climes, yes! But certainly not here! Nigeria, is in a class of its own in terms of exhibiting behaviours expected of a modern society. Here, officials are usually never shirking in calling for the highest level of adulation even while constantly fouling the air with stinking farts from the putrefying genre of Nigerian politics.
For them, citizens are supposed not only to open their mouths and nostrils to gulp and inhale the odiferous stench constantly being released from their posteriors, but are supposed to be smiling doing so. Any other reaction is indefensible, unpatriotic and in most cases punishable to as much as high treason.
That was at the core of the imbroglio in the Natasha case, some people have since dubbed – the Akpabiogate! So, while the entire world would have expected that the issue of Nigeria’s number three citizen being bespattered with the paintbrush of shame as a molester of women, to take the front burner of both political and governmental activities, it has conveniently been relegated to the backstage just like in virtually every other cases.
Yes! For every Senator, who spoke on that Thursday, while Natasha’s political neck lay on the slaughter slab, it was all about the integrity of the Senate. Never bother about the meaning of that expression. It simple assumes a difference in Nigeria. Its only interpretation is the protection of the Senate President at any given time – simplicita!
Now, picture the contradiction between a female Senator, who committed the sin of refusing to move to an assigned seat before speaking and a possibly serial sexual predator sitting at the helm of the highest lawmaking body of the country. What is likely to happen, say in the UK parliament or the US Congress?
Which is more important and which should have come first? But trying to unravel the contradiction or attempting to understand why the reverse should be the case, is akin to the hard labour of struggling to comprehending Nigeria. That is the uphill task. Is it not the reason for the assumption that only an insane mind could actually achieve such a feat?
Search
WhirlWind News
Editorial
Akpabio-gate: Making sense of the Senate drama!
Published
6 hours ago on
March 7, 2025
By
Whirlwindnews
A few hours ago, the curtain finally fell at the Senate. It signified the end to one of the acts in the long scene of the drama Nigerians had been regaled with in the last one week. It came with the gavel sounding on the fate of Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, the Senator representing Kogi Central Senatorial District.
Of course, the end of this particular scene would only surprise the non-initiates. A passive observer, a fresh inductee or even a complete political imbecile would have predicted what would be the eventual fate of the Senator, one of the four female lawmakers in 10th Senate.
In the afternoon of Thursday, March 6, the Senate handed her a set of unsalvoury package, relying on the recommendations reached earlier in the day and provided by the members by the Nada Imesuen Committee on Ethics, Privileges, Code of Conducts and Public Relations.
The package: She would be stripped totally of her status as Senator for six months, including being suspended from plenary, her office being fastened, loss of all salaries and allowances for her and her aides, not getting close anywhere within the precincts of the National Assembly and barring her from embarking on foreign trips as a Senator.
Advertisement
Nobody would have predicted otherwise, except for the totally bereft in the politics of the land. At least, there were about five previous cases within the chambers since 1999 when Nigeria returned to civilian rule to guide anyone. It was obvious that Natasha would suffer the fate of Joseph Waku, Arthur Nzeribe, Ovie Omo-Agege, Ali Ndume, and Abdul Ningi, who had all tasted the same bitter pill.
What was probably left to conjecture was not predicting beforehand the scenes in-between that would garnish the drama side of the entire saga. That came with Natasha stretching the show beyond the confines of the Senate Chambers.
On Friday, February 28, 2025, she used her appearance on The Morning Show, a breakfast programme on ARISE NEWS, a popular Nigerian television network to regale the whole world with some salacious tales of how Godswill Akpabio, President of the Senate of Nigeria and Chairman of the National Assembly, had been labouring strenuously to lure her into his bed.
Now, any ear that heard such an earth-shaking accusation, especially the full details of the various attempts of sex-baiting as narrated by the Kogi Senator, would expect that the political firmament in Nigeria would come to an instant halt. All over the saner climes, everything else in government circle is supposed to take the backstage from that moment.
But that is the difference – most certainly – the tragedy. In those climes, yes! But certainly not here! Nigeria, is in a class of its own in terms of exhibiting behaviours expected of a modern society. Here, officials are usually never shirking in calling for the highest level of adulation even while constantly fouling the air with stinking farts from the putrefying genre of Nigerian politics.
Advertisement
For them, citizens are supposed not only to open their mouths and nostrils to gulp and inhale the odiferous stench constantly being released from their posteriors, but are supposed to be smiling doing so. Any other reaction is indefensible, unpatriotic and in most cases punishable to as much as high treason.
That was at the core of the imbroglio in the Natasha case, some people have since dubbed – the Akpabiogate! So, while the entire world would have expected that the issue of Nigeria’s number three citizen being bespattered with the paintbrush of shame as a molester of women, to take the front burner of both political and governmental activities, it has conveniently been relegated to the backstage just like in virtually every other cases.
Yes! For every Senator, who spoke on that Thursday, while Natasha’s political neck lay on the slaughter slab, it was all about the integrity of the Senate. Never bother about the meaning of that expression. It simple assumes a difference in Nigeria. Its only interpretation is the protection of the Senate President at any given time – simplicita!
Now, picture the contradiction between a female Senator, who committed the sin of refusing to move to an assigned seat before speaking and a possibly serial sexual predator sitting at the helm of the highest lawmaking body of the country. What is likely to happen, say in the UK parliament or the US Congress?
Which is more important and which should have come first? But trying to unravel the contradiction or attempting to understand why the reverse should be the case, is akin to the hard labour of struggling to comprehending Nigeria. That is the uphill task. Is it not the reason for the assumption that only an insane mind could actually achieve such a feat?
Advertisement
Yes! To make sense of Nigeria, requires putting a meaning to a Senate President thinking of, let alone, celebrating his birthday in stadium in the first place. It also requires grasping the mindset of the gaily-dressed citizens in various colourful attires, in the crowd-filled seats with each singing and dancing at that occasion without asking the basic questions – where are all these coming from – the funding and all – and why such lavish fund to promote it could not be channelled into production of nets for the immediate fishing communities. You would be trying to understand Nigeria, if you did as much as raise such a question. You could even get a slap from the man sitting behind you eavesdropping into your thoughts.
Knowing Nigeria would explain the private jets that took over every space in the local airport like locusts in a green vegetable farm during the birthday event. It would even explain the tour of the said mansion with ornamental furniture and all – one of the crime-scenes for the supposed expression of the sexual desires.
Now, in which other country of the world has it been heard that a Senate President celebrated his birthday in a stadium and what mindset would have led to it? Julius Ceasar, one of the most celebrated noblemen in world history was never recorded to engage in such monumental displays even with all his regal splendour.
Again, attempting to give a meaning to why the Senate saw Natasha’s behaviour as more crucial and urgent than addressing the sex-for-favour allegation against Akpabio, would involve trying to fathom the situation where lawmakers in a hunger-ravaged country would be the highest paid in the world, far beyond their counterparts in the most buoyant countries like the United States, Europe and Asia.
It would explain why the 469 lawmakers at the Nigerian National Assembly would be gifted Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs) costing N160million each from funds borrowed from rich countries while lawmakers from the same rich countries went to work using car-pooling arrangements, because they could not afford riding in expensive cars.
It would explain why Nigerian Senators would be entitled to new houses each four years while Senators of the United States would share hostel-like apartments because they could hardly afford the rents in Washington and still make good laws that benefit their societies and make them sought-after in the world.
Imagine what SOTUS like Joe Biden would have collected in cars and housing allowances for the 36 years he spent in congress, were he a Nigerian Senator. Yet, he would probably be still paying mortgage as his own housing arrangements if he did not sort himself out through other means.
Search
WhirlWind News
Editorial
Akpabio-gate: Making sense of the Senate drama!
Published
6 hours ago on
March 7, 2025
By
Whirlwindnews
A few hours ago, the curtain finally fell at the Senate. It signified the end to one of the acts in the long scene of the drama Nigerians had been regaled with in the last one week. It came with the gavel sounding on the fate of Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, the Senator representing Kogi Central Senatorial District.
Of course, the end of this particular scene would only surprise the non-initiates. A passive observer, a fresh inductee or even a complete political imbecile would have predicted what would be the eventual fate of the Senator, one of the four female lawmakers in 10th Senate.
In the afternoon of Thursday, March 6, the Senate handed her a set of unsalvoury package, relying on the recommendations reached earlier in the day and provided by the members by the Nada Imesuen Committee on Ethics, Privileges, Code of Conducts and Public Relations.
The package: She would be stripped totally of her status as Senator for six months, including being suspended from plenary, her office being fastened, loss of all salaries and allowances for her and her aides, not getting close anywhere within the precincts of the National Assembly and barring her from embarking on foreign trips as a Senator.
Advertisement
Nobody would have predicted otherwise, except for the totally bereft in the politics of the land. At least, there were about five previous cases within the chambers since 1999 when Nigeria returned to civilian rule to guide anyone. It was obvious that Natasha would suffer the fate of Joseph Waku, Arthur Nzeribe, Ovie Omo-Agege, Ali Ndume, and Abdul Ningi, who had all tasted the same bitter pill.
What was probably left to conjecture was not predicting beforehand the scenes in-between that would garnish the drama side of the entire saga. That came with Natasha stretching the show beyond the confines of the Senate Chambers.
On Friday, February 28, 2025, she used her appearance on The Morning Show, a breakfast programme on ARISE NEWS, a popular Nigerian television network to regale the whole world with some salacious tales of how Godswill Akpabio, President of the Senate of Nigeria and Chairman of the National Assembly, had been labouring strenuously to lure her into his bed.
Now, any ear that heard such an earth-shaking accusation, especially the full details of the various attempts of sex-baiting as narrated by the Kogi Senator, would expect that the political firmament in Nigeria would come to an instant halt. All over the saner climes, everything else in government circle is supposed to take the backstage from that moment.
But that is the difference – most certainly – the tragedy. In those climes, yes! But certainly not here! Nigeria, is in a class of its own in terms of exhibiting behaviours expected of a modern society. Here, officials are usually never shirking in calling for the highest level of adulation even while constantly fouling the air with stinking farts from the putrefying genre of Nigerian politics.
Advertisement
For them, citizens are supposed not only to open their mouths and nostrils to gulp and inhale the odiferous stench constantly being released from their posteriors, but are supposed to be smiling doing so. Any other reaction is indefensible, unpatriotic and in most cases punishable to as much as high treason.
That was at the core of the imbroglio in the Natasha case, some people have since dubbed – the Akpabiogate! So, while the entire world would have expected that the issue of Nigeria’s number three citizen being bespattered with the paintbrush of shame as a molester of women, to take the front burner of both political and governmental activities, it has conveniently been relegated to the backstage just like in virtually every other cases.
Yes! For every Senator, who spoke on that Thursday, while Natasha’s political neck lay on the slaughter slab, it was all about the integrity of the Senate. Never bother about the meaning of that expression. It simple assumes a difference in Nigeria. Its only interpretation is the protection of the Senate President at any given time – simplicita!
Now, picture the contradiction between a female Senator, who committed the sin of refusing to move to an assigned seat before speaking and a possibly serial sexual predator sitting at the helm of the highest lawmaking body of the country. What is likely to happen, say in the UK parliament or the US Congress?
Which is more important and which should have come first? But trying to unravel the contradiction or attempting to understand why the reverse should be the case, is akin to the hard labour of struggling to comprehending Nigeria. That is the uphill task. Is it not the reason for the assumption that only an insane mind could actually achieve such a feat?
Advertisement
Yes! To make sense of Nigeria, requires putting a meaning to a Senate President thinking of, let alone, celebrating his birthday in stadium in the first place. It also requires grasping the mindset of the gaily-dressed citizens in various colourful attires, in the crowd-filled seats with each singing and dancing at that occasion without asking the basic questions – where are all these coming from – the funding and all – and why such lavish fund to promote it could not be channelled into production of nets for the immediate fishing communities. You would be trying to understand Nigeria, if you did as much as raise such a question. You could even get a slap from the man sitting behind you eavesdropping into your thoughts.
Knowing Nigeria would explain the private jets that took over every space in the local airport like locusts in a green vegetable farm during the birthday event. It would even explain the tour of the said mansion with ornamental furniture and all – one of the crime-scenes for the supposed expression of the sexual desires.
Now, in which other country of the world has it been heard that a Senate President celebrated his birthday in a stadium and what mindset would have led to it? Julius Ceasar, one of the most celebrated noblemen in world history was never recorded to engage in such monumental displays even with all his regal splendour.
Again, attempting to give a meaning to why the Senate saw Natasha’s behaviour as more crucial and urgent than addressing the sex-for-favour allegation against Akpabio, would involve trying to fathom the situation where lawmakers in a hunger-ravaged country would be the highest paid in the world, far beyond their counterparts in the most buoyant countries like the United States, Europe and Asia.
It would explain why the 469 lawmakers at the Nigerian National Assembly would be gifted Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs) costing N160million each from funds borrowed from rich countries while lawmakers from the same rich countries went to work using car-pooling arrangements, because they could not afford riding in expensive cars.
Advertisement
It would explain why Nigerian Senators would be entitled to new houses each four years while Senators of the United States would share hostel-like apartments because they could hardly afford the rents in Washington and still make good laws that benefit their societies and make them sought-after in the world.
Imagine what SOTUS like Joe Biden would have collected in cars and housing allowances for the 36 years he spent in congress, were he a Nigerian Senator. Yet, he would probably be still paying mortgage as his own housing arrangements if he did not sort himself out through other means.
These are the contradictions that must be settled for those attempting to grasp what happened in the Senate on Thursday. Yes! It is all about the integrity of the Senate. But that integrity must not include inquiring into the foolishness of acquiring a N160million SUV to navigate – wait for it – the bad roads in Nigeria – instead of employing the huge amount used in buying the exotic automobiles in fixing the roads so that citizens with bicycles could also access them with ease. That, certainly is the thinking in other climes, not Nigeria.
No! Integrity of the Senate must not include appropriating funds borrowed from global financial institutions for the executive to buy a presidential yacht, purchase exotic cars for the office of the first lady or build a N21billion house for the Vice President in a country where more than 100 million citizens go to bed on empty stomach daily. By the way, has it not been said that the N21billion VP mansion is currently unoccupied and could now be home to rodents, serpents and scorpions?
Nobody will understand the Senate brand of integrity without first fathoming a Nigeria where the President and or his handlers, not only desiring, but actually going ahead to acquire a mimic of The Beast, the US presidential limousine in addition to a model of Air Force One, and lining hundreds of other state-of-the-art automobiles each time he travelled in the streets amid deafening cries of ebi kpa wa – we are hungry from citizens.
Search
WhirlWind News
Editorial
Akpabio-gate: Making sense of the Senate drama!
Published
6 hours ago on
March 7, 2025
By
Whirlwindnews
A few hours ago, the curtain finally fell at the Senate. It signified the end to one of the acts in the long scene of the drama Nigerians had been regaled with in the last one week. It came with the gavel sounding on the fate of Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, the Senator representing Kogi Central Senatorial District.
Of course, the end of this particular scene would only surprise the non-initiates. A passive observer, a fresh inductee or even a complete political imbecile would have predicted what would be the eventual fate of the Senator, one of the four female lawmakers in 10th Senate.
In the afternoon of Thursday, March 6, the Senate handed her a set of unsalvoury package, relying on the recommendations reached earlier in the day and provided by the members by the Nada Imesuen Committee on Ethics, Privileges, Code of Conducts and Public Relations.
The package: She would be stripped totally of her status as Senator for six months, including being suspended from plenary, her office being fastened, loss of all salaries and allowances for her and her aides, not getting close anywhere within the precincts of the National Assembly and barring her from embarking on foreign trips as a Senator.
Advertisement
Nobody would have predicted otherwise, except for the totally bereft in the politics of the land. At least, there were about five previous cases within the chambers since 1999 when Nigeria returned to civilian rule to guide anyone. It was obvious that Natasha would suffer the fate of Joseph Waku, Arthur Nzeribe, Ovie Omo-Agege, Ali Ndume, and Abdul Ningi, who had all tasted the same bitter pill.
What was probably left to conjecture was not predicting beforehand the scenes in-between that would garnish the drama side of the entire saga. That came with Natasha stretching the show beyond the confines of the Senate Chambers.
On Friday, February 28, 2025, she used her appearance on The Morning Show, a breakfast programme on ARISE NEWS, a popular Nigerian television network to regale the whole world with some salacious tales of how Godswill Akpabio, President of the Senate of Nigeria and Chairman of the National Assembly, had been labouring strenuously to lure her into his bed.
Now, any ear that heard such an earth-shaking accusation, especially the full details of the various attempts of sex-baiting as narrated by the Kogi Senator, would expect that the political firmament in Nigeria would come to an instant halt. All over the saner climes, everything else in government circle is supposed to take the backstage from that moment.
But that is the difference – most certainly – the tragedy. In those climes, yes! But certainly not here! Nigeria, is in a class of its own in terms of exhibiting behaviours expected of a modern society. Here, officials are usually never shirking in calling for the highest level of adulation even while constantly fouling the air with stinking farts from the putrefying genre of Nigerian politics.
Advertisement
For them, citizens are supposed not only to open their mouths and nostrils to gulp and inhale the odiferous stench constantly being released from their posteriors, but are supposed to be smiling doing so. Any other reaction is indefensible, unpatriotic and in most cases punishable to as much as high treason.
That was at the core of the imbroglio in the Natasha case, some people have since dubbed – the Akpabiogate! So, while the entire world would have expected that the issue of Nigeria’s number three citizen being bespattered with the paintbrush of shame as a molester of women, to take the front burner of both political and governmental activities, it has conveniently been relegated to the backstage just like in virtually every other cases.
Yes! For every Senator, who spoke on that Thursday, while Natasha’s political neck lay on the slaughter slab, it was all about the integrity of the Senate. Never bother about the meaning of that expression. It simple assumes a difference in Nigeria. Its only interpretation is the protection of the Senate President at any given time – simplicita!
Now, picture the contradiction between a female Senator, who committed the sin of refusing to move to an assigned seat before speaking and a possibly serial sexual predator sitting at the helm of the highest lawmaking body of the country. What is likely to happen, say in the UK parliament or the US Congress?
Which is more important and which should have come first? But trying to unravel the contradiction or attempting to understand why the reverse should be the case, is akin to the hard labour of struggling to comprehending Nigeria. That is the uphill task. Is it not the reason for the assumption that only an insane mind could actually achieve such a feat?
Advertisement
Yes! To make sense of Nigeria, requires putting a meaning to a Senate President thinking of, let alone, celebrating his birthday in stadium in the first place. It also requires grasping the mindset of the gaily-dressed citizens in various colourful attires, in the crowd-filled seats with each singing and dancing at that occasion without asking the basic questions – where are all these coming from – the funding and all – and why such lavish fund to promote it could not be channelled into production of nets for the immediate fishing communities. You would be trying to understand Nigeria, if you did as much as raise such a question. You could even get a slap from the man sitting behind you eavesdropping into your thoughts.
Knowing Nigeria would explain the private jets that took over every space in the local airport like locusts in a green vegetable farm during the birthday event. It would even explain the tour of the said mansion with ornamental furniture and all – one of the crime-scenes for the supposed expression of the sexual desires.
Now, in which other country of the world has it been heard that a Senate President celebrated his birthday in a stadium and what mindset would have led to it? Julius Ceasar, one of the most celebrated noblemen in world history was never recorded to engage in such monumental displays even with all his regal splendour.
Again, attempting to give a meaning to why the Senate saw Natasha’s behaviour as more crucial and urgent than addressing the sex-for-favour allegation against Akpabio, would involve trying to fathom the situation where lawmakers in a hunger-ravaged country would be the highest paid in the world, far beyond their counterparts in the most buoyant countries like the United States, Europe and Asia.
It would explain why the 469 lawmakers at the Nigerian National Assembly would be gifted Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs) costing N160million each from funds borrowed from rich countries while lawmakers from the same rich countries went to work using car-pooling arrangements, because they could not afford riding in expensive cars.
Advertisement
It would explain why Nigerian Senators would be entitled to new houses each four years while Senators of the United States would share hostel-like apartments because they could hardly afford the rents in Washington and still make good laws that benefit their societies and make them sought-after in the world.
Imagine what SOTUS like Joe Biden would have collected in cars and housing allowances for the 36 years he spent in congress, were he a Nigerian Senator. Yet, he would probably be still paying mortgage as his own housing arrangements if he did not sort himself out through other means.
These are the contradictions that must be settled for those attempting to grasp what happened in the Senate on Thursday. Yes! It is all about the integrity of the Senate. But that integrity must not include inquiring into the foolishness of acquiring a N160million SUV to navigate – wait for it – the bad roads in Nigeria – instead of employing the huge amount used in buying the exotic automobiles in fixing the roads so that citizens with bicycles could also access them with ease. That, certainly is the thinking in other climes, not Nigeria.
No! Integrity of the Senate must not include appropriating funds borrowed from global financial institutions for the executive to buy a presidential yacht, purchase exotic cars for the office of the first lady or build a N21billion house for the Vice President in a country where more than 100 million citizens go to bed on empty stomach daily. By the way, has it not been said that the N21billion VP mansion is currently unoccupied and could now be home to rodents, serpents and scorpions?
Nobody will understand the Senate brand of integrity without first fathoming a Nigeria where the President and or his handlers, not only desiring, but actually going ahead to acquire a mimic of The Beast, the US presidential limousine in addition to a model of Air Force One, and lining hundreds of other state-of-the-art automobiles each time he travelled in the streets amid deafening cries of ebi kpa wa – we are hungry from citizens.
Advertisement
Yes! To understand what happened in the Senate on Thursday, means fathoming a country whose successive leaders over the years borrow hard currencies from lending institutions, steal the entire funds, return same to the countries they were borrowed from, borrow again and return, in an endless circle of official graft.
Come to think of it, is it not surprising that till date, not a single Senator has raised a voice to speak against the hunger in the land or made any whimper against official shenanigans in the executive – not even the opposition – not even members of the fire-eating Labour Party (LP) members, who had sworn to mimic the public display of austerity of Peter Obi, the man they rode on his back to office? Why have they all suddenly gone silent? That is the Senate that is talking about integrity!
In fact, is it not even more surprising that the two principal actors – Ireti Kingibe, the Senator representing the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and Neda Imesuen, Edo South, who led the indictment without hearing of Natasha are from the same LP? Has anyone heard the voices of other female Senators? They are all imprisoned in the Ometa of silence the National Assembly adopted since the All Progressives Congress (APC) came into the picture in Nigeria.
Naturally, as the curtain fell on Thursday, those whose eyes remain on the stage would certainly not be disappointed. They would no doubt get the entertainment they seek. Soon, the curtain will rise again for a fresh act in another scene, as the drama continues.
But one thing is sure – in this act Natasha is bound to lose no matter how strong her performance. Those seeking to see Akpabio in the dock on that stage, should better banish the thought. He will never come to trial. In fact, he must end up the hero. He will never be the villain. Even the imbeciles in Nigeria and elsewhere know this. Anyone who fails to get it should forget about it. It is how Nigeria rolls. To fathom it, requires one state of the mind – madness
