Senate President Godswill Akpabio has launched a fresh N200 billion defamation lawsuit against Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, intensifying the already heated tensions within the upper chamber.

Akpoti-Uduaghan, who represents Kogi Central, confirmed receiving the court papers on Friday after posting them on her social media pages. The suit, marked FCT/HC/CV/3356/2025, was filed before Justice U. P. Kekemeke of the Federal Capital Territory High Court.

In the filing, Akpabio accuses the senator of making allegations he describes as damaging, false, and deliberately aimed at tarnishing his public image, including claims suggesting he is a sexual predator. The Senate President is seeking massive financial compensation along with public retractions and broadcast apologies across the country.

Attempts to serve Akpoti-Uduaghan directly were unsuccessful, prompting the court to approve substituted service on November 6. The documents were then delivered through the Office of the Clerk of the National Assembly, a step she later confirmed.

Responding online, she said the lawsuit finally gives her the platform she was previously denied by the Senate Committee on Ethics and Privileges, which she claims refused to hear her complaint earlier in the year because a related case had been filed by Akpabio’s wife. She insisted she is prepared to prove her allegations, including claims of sexual harassment and what she describes as retaliatory actions that followed her refusal to comply with certain demands.

The legal clash adds another layer to their long-standing feud. Akpoti-Uduaghan was suspended for six months in March 2025 after protesting the relocation of her seat during plenary sessions. Although her suspension elapsed in September, she said internal resistance delayed her return until her office was later reopened by Sergeant-at-Arms personnel. Upon resuming, she maintained she had no apology to make.