The Federal Government has filed a fresh criminal charge against suspended Kogi Central Senator, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, intensifying what critics describe as a pattern of legal harassment aimed at silencing dissenting political voices.
The latest charge, marked FHC/ABJ/CR/195/25, was lodged at the Federal High Court in Abuja on May 22, 2025. It follows closely on the heels of a similar case, CR/297/25, currently pending before the FCT High Court, both based on comments allegedly made by the Senator. The government claims that these statements were damaging to the reputations of Senate President Godswill Akpabio and former Kogi State governor Yahaya Bello.
While the FCT High Court case rests on Section 392 of the Penal Code concerning criminal defamation, the new case invokes Sections 24(1)(b) and 24(2)(c) of the 2024 amended Cybercrime (Prohibition) Act. The charges accuse Akpoti-Uduaghan of publishing online remarks deemed harmful to the public image of the two political figures.
The Senator has maintained her innocence, insisting that the allegations are politically motivated and aimed at stifling opposition voices. Legal experts and civil rights advocates have also expressed alarm over the strategy of filing parallel charges in separate courts for the same alleged offense — a move widely criticized as “forum shopping.”
Legal analysts argue that this practice, which involves pursuing identical or similar cases across different courts, undermines due process and clogs the judiciary with duplicative litigation. They warn that such tactics erode public confidence in the justice system and infringe on the constitutional right to a fair trial.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, who was granted bail by the FCT High Court on June 19, is scheduled to appear before the Federal High Court for arraignment on June 30.
Beyond the legal implications, the use of both cybercrime and defamation laws to prosecute critical speech has raised concerns among human rights groups, who note that defamation is increasingly handled as a civil issue worldwide. Within Nigeria, several states — including Lagos, Delta, Edo, and Ekiti — have already abolished criminal defamation statutes, emphasizing the need to protect democratic expression over political sensitivities.
Observers view the prosecution of Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan as part of a troubling trend of using legal instruments to suppress freedom of speech and silence outspoken public figures — especially women in politics. Rights advocates insist that the case is less about protecting reputations and more about controlling political narratives.
