Akpabio Runs the Senate Like a Personal Empire; Targets Opposing Lawmakers – Elisha Abbo.
From Our Correspondent.
Former Senator Ishaku Elisha Abbo, representing Adamawa North, has accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of targeting lawmakers who oppose his leadership and running the Nigerian Senate as if it were his personal empire.
During an appearance on the Arise News program, ‘PrimeTime’, on Wednesday night, Abbo alleged that Akpabio orchestrated the removal of senators who did not support him.
“He told me that five senators would be removed. I asked how he knew this, and he replied, ‘I am the Senate President. I know.’ True to his word, five of us were removed. I had no idea I was one of them,” he stated.
Recalling events leading up to Akpabio’s election as Senate President, Abbo revealed that he rejected Akpabio’s request for support. “When I was elected to the 10th Senate, I became the de facto Director-General of Senator Abdulaziz Yari’s campaign. Akpabio came to my hotel room around 2 AM, asking for my support. I told him I was already committed to Yari and wished him good luck,” he said.
Abbo also alleged that financial incentives were offered to senators to support Akpabio. “At a meeting at Transcorp Hilton, $10,000 was being distributed, but I refused to take any money,” he disclosed.
He further accused Akpabio of denying him certain privileges following his removal. “Every other senator who was removed by the courts received their vehicles, but I was excluded. This reflects the level of vindictiveness displayed by Akpabio,” he claimed.
Additionally, Abbo mentioned Senator Ali Ndume, who was reportedly sidelined by Akpabio for challenging the Senate’s leadership. “Senator Ali Ndume was Akpabio’s Director-General. When he raised concerns about how things were being run in the Senate, he was removed as Chief Whip and stripped of his position as Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations.
“I also moved to amend the Senate Standing Rules so that only senators who had served at least one term could contest for Senate leadership. But what did Akpabio do? He rewrote the rules to allow first-term senators to become leaders of both the majority and minority caucuses—just so he could control them.
“Do you know that in Akpabio’s house, senators serve him tea? I told him, ‘You are no longer a governor. These senators are our colleagues, not your commissioners. They are not here to serve you tea,’” Abbo alleged.
“I have always defended the integrity of the Senate. The issue lies with the leadership, not the institution itself.”
