Senate President Godswill Akpabio has refuted allegations that he played a role in Senator Elisha Abbo’s removal from the Senate. Abbo had claimed that Akpabio was behind his removal from the Senate, asserting that he, along with four other senators, was targeted for removal because they worked against Akpabio’s emergence as Senate President.

Abbo, who campaigned and worked for Senator Abdulaziz Yari, Akpabio’s primary challenger for the Senate presidency, suggested that Senator Orji Uzor Kalu was the next target for removal from the Senate.

In response to the allegations, Eseme Eyiboh, media aide to the Senate President, stated that Akpabio had no involvement in the court’s decision to sack Abbo from the Senate. He emphasized that court judgments are based on the provisions of the Electoral Act and the evidence presented by petitioners, with no reason for Akpabio to target his colleagues.

The Court of Appeal in Abuja had nullified Abbo’s election, ruling in favour of his rival, Amos Yohanna of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The court found that the election results did not comply with the Electoral Act, deducting invalid votes and declaring Yohanna as the validly elected senator for the district.