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A former lawmaker who represented Cross-River South Senatorial District, Senator Florence Ita-Giwa, has asserted it is a sign of weakness for female senators to accuse a male colleague of sexual harassment.
Naija News recalls that the Senator representing Kogi Central Senatorial district, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, recently accused the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, of frustrating her moves to raise motions about Ajaokuta Steel Company in Kogi State because she refused to sleep with him.
However, while reacting to Natasha’s sexual allegation against Akpabio, Ita-Giwa, during an interview on Arise TV on Tuesday, March 4, 2025, said once women are elected into the Senate, they cannot be sexually harassed or claim to be sexually harassed.
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.
“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, the former Presidential Adviser insisted that it is a sign of weakness for female senators to accuse their colleagues of making passes at them.
She added, “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.”
English (US) ·