I will sue ex NDDC chairwoman over sexual harassment allegations & slapping me—Senate President Akpabio

Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, has threatened to sue former acting Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Joy Nunieh, over her allegations of sexual harassment against him.

Akpabio made the declaration on Friday during an event held in the former Senate chamber at the National Assembly complex to mark International Women’s Day, reports Nigerian Tribune.

He refuted Nunieh’s claims, describing them as baseless and alleging that she resorted to such accusations after failing to provide a valid National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificate.

In July 2020, Nunieh had alleged that she slapped Akpabio, who was the then Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, in response to his alleged attempt to assault her.

“Why did he not tell Nigerians that I slapped him in his guest house at Apo? I am the only Ogoni woman, the only Nigerian woman that has slapped him. I slapped him because of his plan B. Since he couldn’t get me to take that money, he thought that he could come up on me,” she said during an interview on Arise TV at the time.

Addressing the matter on Friday, Akpabio announced his intention to take legal action against Nunieh. “My other sister, the one they sometimes refer to as Joy Nunieh, I will like to mention her name because she will be hearing from my lawyer anytime in the next one week. Crime never dies.”

He also claimed that his decision to remove Nunieh as NDDC acting MD was based on concerns over her credentials.

“When I received a letter from the late Abba Kyari, the Chief of Staff, stating that her certificates were questionable and she did not do National Youth Service, I wrote to the NYSC, and the NYSC responded. So I quickly changed her before it became a scandal.

“As soon as she was changed, hell was let loose. She first said Akpabio wanted me to swear an oath of allegiance in the Villa, and they told her that the way the Villa is wired— The next thing, she came out and said, ‘He tried to touch me, and I slapped him. I am the first woman in the Niger Delta to slap him.’ So Ruben Abati now said, ‘Is it like sexual harassment or rape?’ She said, ‘No, not rape, maybe something like that.’ He said, ‘Sexual harassment?’ and she said, ‘Yes, sexual harassment.’”

This comes amid another sexual harassment allegation against the Senate President by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.

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