“Female Senators cannot be sexually harassed” – Senator Florence spills

• Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan claimed that Senate President Godswill Akpabio impeded her efforts to discuss Ajaokuta Steel Company in Kogi State due to her refusal to sleep with him.

• Senator Ita-Giwa argued that women cannot claim sexual harassment when elected to the Senate.

Former Presidential Adviser and Senator Florence Ita-Giwa has responded to allegations of sexual harassment made by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, asserting that female Senators cannot experience sexual harassment.

During her appearance on Arise TV on Tuesday, she addressed the issue. It is important to note that Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan had recently alleged in a live television broadcast that Senate President Godswill Akpabio obstructed her attempts to discuss matters concerning the Ajaokuta Steel Company in Kogi State due to her refusal to engage in a sexual relationship with him.

In contrast, Senator Ita-Giwa firmly expressed her belief that women cannot claim to be victims of sexual harassment once they are elected to the Senate. The former representative for Cross-River South Senatorial District views complaints of sexual harassment from female senators as indicative of weakness.

She said, “By the time you contest elections and get to Senate, you have passed that stage of your life of being sexually harassed. You go there to serve, and you are all equal in that place. And again, it shows weakness; you don’t allow it. It (sexual harassment) can not happen in the Senate.

“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.

“At that stage in politics, if you come out and say someone is sexually harassing you, it is a weakness.

“On this matter, I am not with Senator Akpoti. It is the worst sign of weakness on a woman’s part to come out and accuse a man of making passes at you at that level.”