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Senators Are Beyond Sexual Harassment, Ita-Giwa Counters Natasha’s Claims
Former Presidential Adviser, Senator Florence Ita-Giwa, has dismissed Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan’s claims of sexual harassment, saying once women become senators, they can’t be sexually harassed.
Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan recently alleged during a live television programme that the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, obstructed her efforts to raise motions concerning Ajaokuta Steel Company in Kogi State because she refused his sexual advances.
Responding to these accusations during an interview on Arise TV on Tuesday, March 4, 2025, Senator Ita-Giwa expressed her belief that it is impossible for female senators to experience sexual harassment, emphaizing that such claims reflect weakness.
She said, “By the time you contest elections and get to Senate, you have passed that stage of your life of being sexually harassed. You go there to serve, and you are all equal in that place. And again, it shows weakness; you don’t allow it. It (sexual harassment) can not happen in the Senate.
She clarified that while she was not accusing Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan of fabricating her claims, she stressed that female senators should not view themselves as women in the Senate but rather as equal legislators alongside their male counterparts.
“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. At that stage in politics, if you come out and say someone is sexually harassing you, it is a weakness.”
When asked if female lawmakers should keep quiet when their colleague sexually harasses them, Ita-Giwa insisted that it is a sign of weakness for female senators to accuse their colleagues of making passes at them.
“On this matter, I am not with Senator Akpoti. It is the worst sign of weakness on a woman’s part to come out and accuse a man of making passes at you at that level,” she said.
She maintained that female senators should see themselves as equal lawmakers to their male counterparts because winning senatorial elections is not easy.
