VIDEO: Senator Natasha Confronts Immigration Officials For Seizing Her Passport, Accuses Akpabio of Witch-Hunt

• Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of ordering immigration officers to seize her passport at the Abuja airport in a viral Facebook Live video.

In a tense scene at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport on Tuesday morning, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central, accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of ordering immigration officers to seize her international passport in an alleged attempt to prevent her from leaving the country.

The dramatic confrontation was captured in a Facebook Live video streamed directly from the airport terminal, where the visibly upset lawmaker confronted officials who, according to her, had withheld her passport for over 20 minutes.

“Is Godswill Akpabio so important? Why is he overruling boundaries?” she fumed. “The Senate President has instructed the Comptroller-General of Customs to deny me exit, to withhold my passport. This is wrong.”

Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan alleged that this was not the first time her travel documents had been withheld at the airport.

“The last time this happened, he said every time I travel out, I smear the country’s image by granting interviews. It took someone influential to call them before my passport was released,” she added.

During the live stream, immigration officers could be heard apologising in the background. One officer said, “We are sorry ma,” to which Akpoti-Uduaghan responded sharply, “Do not tell me sorry, let me have my passport.”

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The senator insisted there was no legal basis for the action.

“There was no court order. Yes, I have two Federal Government cases against me — but President Bola Tinubu has already instructed the Attorney-General of the Federation to withdraw them,” she stated.

She further claimed that President Tinubu had personally directed Akpabio to end all politically motivated cases against her.

“The President actually spoke to Akpabio to terminate the cases because he admitted they were politically motivated. So, there’s no reason for this harassment,” she said.

Akpoti-Uduaghan went on to question why she was being treated “like a criminal.”

“I have not missed any court appearance. I am not a flight risk or a threat to my country. So why are you treating me like this? Can I have my passport, please?”

Moments later, one of the immigration officers returned her passport.

“Sometimes I think you just have to be a rebel to get things right. You keep asking Nigerians to be good citizens — but if I hadn’t gone public, would you have given me back my passport?” she remarked, visibly shaken.

As of press time, neither the office of the Senate President nor the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) had issued an official statement regarding the incident.

See video below