Officers of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) withheld the international passport of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan for several minutes on Tuesday.
The representative of Kogi Central Senatorial District revealed this development in a video she recorded in the early hours of Tuesday.
The video was recorded at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport after officers of the NIS held onto her passport as she made to travel out of Nigeria.
She said her international passport was being withheld for political reasons.
Akpoti-Uduaghan said in the video: “Have I committed any offence?
“Why are you withholding my passport?
“Hello, fellow Nigerians, good morning.
“This is Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.
“Having completed the celebration of my second year in office, I decided to take a week off.
“So I’m at the airport here and my passport is being withheld again.
“The same thing happened last time when my passport was seized.
“I have committed no offence.
“And there is no order from the court to withhold my passport and deny me travelling.
“The last time this thing happened, the Officer-in-Charge told us that the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, instructed them to withhold my passport and prevent me from travelling because he said each time I travel out of the country, I smear the country’s image by granting interviews in international media.
“Please, can you tell them to release my passport and this embarrassment should stop.
“Turning to the immigration officials, Akpoti-Uduaghan said: “You have no right to withhold my passport.
“You have no right to deny me exit and entry into my country.
“I have not committed any offence.
“And this must stop.”
One of the Officers then said to the senator: “Sorry.”
She immediately responded: “As a matter of fact, I have to sue you for continuously embarrassing me.”
The Officer again said: “Sorry.”
She responded: “No, don’t tell me sorry.
“Can you please let me have my passport?
“You can’t keep doing this to me all the time.
“I have been standing here for the past 20 minutes.”
Akpoti-Uduaghan said the last time her passport was withheld, she had to call an influential Nigerian for it to be released.
She said she was not a flight risk as she had no case in court.
She said President Bola Tinubu had directed that the cases against her be terminated as it had been confirmed to be politically motivated.
While still recording the video, her international passport was handed over to her.
It could, however, not be confirmed if she was eventually allowed to travel as she ended the video, which appeared to be a live session on social media.
