Two courts in Abuja on Thursday struck out the two criminal charges filed by the office of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) against Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.
Earlier in the day, Justice Chizoba Orji of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory High Court (FCT) struck out the alleged defamation charge following application by prosecution lawyer, Aderonke Imana.
At the mention of the case, Imana informed the court about the notice of discontinuance filed by the prosecution and urged the court to strike out the charge.
Responding, defence lawyer, Ehioje West-Idahosa, SAN, did not object, but added the court should also order the release of all documents belonging to the defendant and her sureties.
In a brief ruling, Justice Orji struck out the charge, discharge the defendants and her sureties and ordered that all their documents be returned to them.
Although the second proceedings in relation to the alleged cybercrime charge before a Federal High Court in Abuja were conducted in the judge’s chambers, it was learnt that Justice Mohammed Umar also struck out the charge owing to the notice of discontinuance filed by the prosecution.
The office of the AGF had charged Akpoti-Uduaghan with criminal defamation before the HIgh Court of the FCT, while a charge of alleged cybercrime was filed against her before the Federal High Court in relation to her claim that Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio and ex-governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, planed to kill her.
Although the prosecution did not provide details about what informed the decision to discontinue the cases, it may not be unconnected with the choice by Akpabio to withdraw defamation cases filed in his name.
Akpabio had recently announced that he had instructed his lawyers to discontinue all defamation cases filed in his name.
The Senate President explained that his decision to withdraw the cases was a deliberate choice rooted in moral authority, faith, and the demands of legislative leadership.
Akpabio made the clarification in a statement issued in Abuja by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Eseme Eyiboh.
The statement partly read, “In a political culture where litigation has become an extension of reputation management, this was no minor gesture. Akpabio had been unapologetic about defending his name through the courts.
“The law, in his hands, had been both shield and sword. To voluntarily lay it down is to interrupt a habit of power. The question, therefore, is not whether Akpabio could afford to forgive. It is why he chose to do so.
“This is where forgiveness ceases to be sentimental and becomes political philosophy. The same drive for tangible outcomes has characterised, albeit differently, his tenure as Senate President.”
Akpabio added that managing a Senate comprising 109 senators with competing ambitions requires restraint, credibility, and setting an example, rather than engaging in constant legal battles that could distract from governance.
“The Senate has been unusually productive and notably calm—more than ninety-six bills passed in two years, with over fifty-eight assented to by the President.
“In a chamber once notorious for theatrics, this stability is not accidental. It reflects a leadership style that values restraint over spectacle and consensus over conquest.
“This is why the withdrawal of lawsuits should be read not merely as personal forgiveness but as public modelling. Forgiveness, in this sense, becomes civic pedagogy,” he said.