The immediate past Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello has petitioned the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, demanding the arrest and prosecution of suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.
The petition, which was filed on Wednesday, April 16, 2025, accused the Kogi Central lawmaker of making allegedly defamatory and inciting statements that Bello claimed have damaged his reputation and threatened public peace.
The allegations emerged from a public address by Akpoti-Uduaghan during a “Homecoming Rally” in Okehi Local Government Area of Kogi State.
Addressing her supporters, Natasha alleged that Bello instructed Governor Usman Ododo of Kogi State to orchestrate her assassination in Kogi State, with the intent to frame her constituents for the act.
She had said: “Senator Asuquo drove Yahaya Bello to Hilton and the meeting was in two folds. He told him to commence my recall, and that he was going to sponsor it; of course, the money changed hands that night.
“The second thing he told him is that he should try and kill me. He told him the killing should not be done in Abuja but at home here (Ebira land). We didn’t notify the security agents, I called on the media houses, and I want them to publish the news ahead of time that this is the nature of their meeting.”
However, Bello, in a petition signed by his lawyer, N.A. Abubakar described these statements as “false, reckless, and inciting.”
In the petition to the IGP, Bello’s lawyer argued that Natasha’s claims constitute “serious criminal defamation, false accusation, and incitement to public disorder,” all of which are offences under Nigerian law.
The petition further stated that the allegations have portrayed Bello as a “violent political actor,” misleading the public and risking ethnic and political unrest in Kogi Central.
The petition also called for the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) to summon Akpoti-Uduaghan to provide verifiable evidence to substantiate her claims.
Should she fail to do so, Bello’s legal team has demanded her arrest and prosecution for criminal defamation, inciting public disturbance, and spreading false information.
The petition reads in part: “Where she fails to do so, cause her to be arrested and prosecuted by the provisions of the law for criminal defamation, inciting public disturbance, and spreading false information injurious to public peace.
“By accusing our client of plotting an assassination and naming him as a co-conspirator in a purported murder plot (with an attempt to disguise the killing as mob or ethnic violence), Sen. Akpoti-Uduaghan has:
“Gravely damaged our client’s reputation by portraying him as a violent and vengeful political actor and misled the public and tried to incite ethnic and political distrust, especially among clans of Ebiraland in particular and the people of Kogi Central in general.
“Brought his name into disrepute based on an allegation so weighty that, if left unchallenged, could harm his political career and personal safety; and abused her parliamentary status and platform by propagating such falsehoods without evidence, in a very public and politically charged setting.”
