Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, Senator representing Kogi Central, has accused officials of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) of preventing her from travelling abroad and withholding her passport without justification.
Gatekeepers News reports that the lawmaker raised the alarm during a live broadcast on her Facebook page on Tuesday morning, where she was seen confronting immigration officers at the airport.
“Have I committed any offence? Why are you withholding my passport?” she asked in the video.
Akpoti-Uduaghan said the incident occurred shortly after celebrating her second year in office.
“Having completed my second-year celebration, I decided to take a week off. I’m at the airport, and my passport has been withheld again,” she said.
She recalled that a similar incident occurred previously, allegedly on the instruction of Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
“The last time this happened, the officer said Senator Akpabio instructed them to prevent me from travelling because I smear the country’s image through international interviews,” she alleged.
“This is wrong. There was no order. The President even directed the Attorney-General to withdraw all politically motivated cases against me. So there’s no reason my passport should be withheld.”
Visibly upset, the senator threatened legal action against the immigration officers.
“You have no right to withhold my passport or deny me exit from my country. I have committed no offence, and this must stop,” she said.
“I think I have to sue you for continuously embarrassing me. You can’t keep doing this every time.”
Akpoti-Uduaghan insisted she had not missed any of her court appearances.
“There is no court order. I am not a flight risk. So why are you treating me like a criminal?”
Minutes later, one of the officers returned her passport.
“Thank you very much. Sometimes you just have to be a rebel to get things right,” she said as officers were heard apologising in the background.
Reacting to the development, the NIS spokesperson, Akinsola Akinlabi, denied that the senator’s passport was seized.
“NIS didn’t seize the distinguished senator’s passport. She went through routine immigration checks and was allowed to travel,” he told Channels Television.
Akinlabi explained that officers may temporarily take passports for verification but that “does not amount to seizure.”
“She has since been cleared to travel. The video was made during the checks, not after,” he added.
Akpoti-Uduaghan is facing separate cases of alleged criminal defamation and cybercrime before the FCT High Court and the Federal High Court, Abuja. Her cybercrime trial, presided over by Justice Mohammed Umar, is adjourned to November 24.
She recently returned to plenary after a six-month suspension from the Senate for alleged misconduct.
