ABUJA, Nigeria – In a definitive move to squash speculation about internal strife, Senate President Godswill Akpabio has strongly refuted rumours of a plot to impeach him.
The debunking came through his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Eseme Eyiboh, who issued a statement on Saturday, September 16, 2023, clarifying that the Senate remains stable and united.
“The Senate is stable and harmonious as it cannot be distracted by the innuendo of the merchants of political tar brush,” the statement read. Eyiboh went on to characterize the rumor as a “syndicated media attack from outside the precincts of the National Assembly.”
In recent days, certain weekend newspapers have published reports suggesting schemes to destabilize the Senate and its leadership. According to Eyiboh, these reports are “complete imaginations and sometimes laced with malice to achieve what senators are yet to comprehend.”
He emphasized that the Senate has moved beyond the factional discord that might have characterized its keenly contested leadership elections. “The plot to drag in Senators who initially did not support the emergence of the present leadership into a conspiracy that does not exist was uncharitable to the senators and a needless umbrage,” Eyiboh stated.
The Special Adviser clarified that senators are currently away, concluding their holidays in their respective constituencies or other chosen locations. They are taking this time to recuperate after an intense period of inaugurations, ministerial screenings, and other legislative duties.
“Senators are presently concluding their holidays in their constituencies and other places they have chosen to spend their time after the rigors of the inauguration and ministerial screening and other constructive engagements,” Eyiboh said. “All senators are also refreshing themselves ahead of the resumption, therefore, any suggestions that they are presently engaged in other subversive plots against the institution is rather uncharitable.”
Eyiboh further pointed out that senators who initially did not support Akpabio’s leadership have since endorsed him. Linking these senators to any form of conspiracy is not only unfair but also damaging to their reputations.
“We call on the media not to give in to the conspiratorial tales, and not to give damage to the reputations that they have built over time,” Eyiboh concluded.
The strong response from Akpabio’s office aims to clear the air and focus the legislative body’s efforts on governance, free from the distractions of internal coup rumors. As Nigeria’s political scene becomes more complex in the lead-up to upcoming elections, the stability of key governmental bodies like the Senate remains a focal point for both the media and public discourse.
