Female senators are above sexual harassment, says Ita Giwa

A one-time senator who represented Cross River South Senatorial District in the Nigerian Senate, Florence Ita-Giwa, has said that female senators have passed the state of sexual harassment.

The former senator made this statement while weighing on the sexual harassment allegations involving Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan and Senate President Godswill Akpabio in an interview with Arise News on Tuesday.

“By the time you contest elections and get to the Senate, you have passed that stage of your life of being sexually harassed,” said Ita-Giwa.

She also claimed that speaking about sexual harassment in the Senate is a sign of weakness.

“At that stage in the Senate, if you come and say that somebody is sexually harassing you, it’s a weakness. You make yourself unapproachable. You don’t let anybody take you around and show you things. You don’t allow it.

“It (referring to sexual harassment) cannot happen in the Senate,” she added.

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She further clarified that she was not accusing Akpoti-Uduagahan of wrongly accusing the Senate President.

According to her, becoming a senator should embolden female senators to stand strong against any form of harassment.

“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.”

Many politicians, former politicians, and groups have weighed in on the sexual harassment allegations involving Akpoti Uduaghan and Akpabio since she accused the Senate President of sexually harassing her.

In February, the Senator representing the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Ireti Kingibe, berated Akpoti-Uduaghan for her outburst over the seating reassignment in the Senate.

The FCT Senator added that Akpoti-Uduaghan was the most privileged of all serving female senators.