Oshiomhole Retracts Natasha Signature-Forgery Claim, Aligns With Senate Spokesperson

Senator Adams Oshiomhole (Edo North) has publicly retracted his earlier suggestion that some senators’ signatures on the report recommending the suspension of Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan were forged.

In a statement on Tuesday, Oshiomhole said his comments during an AIT programme on June 15 had been misrepresented, and clarified that he had not alleged forgery in any specific case.

“My attention has been brought to an obvious misrepresentation of the statement I made during the course of my interview on AIT ‘Politics Today’ broadcast on Monday 15th June 2026,” the statement read.

“The insinuation that I said signatures of Senators were forged is a complete misrepresentation of what I actually said,” he said.

Oshiomhole said he agreed with Yemi Adaramodu, the Senate spokesperson, who had earlier stated that no senator’s signature was forged during the Akpoti-Uduaghan suspension process.

“I agree absolutely with the spokesperson of the Senate, Distinguished Senator Yemi Adaramodu, that no signature of Senators was forged in Natasha Akpoti’s suspension,” he said.

“This is because, no Senator complained to me that his or her signature was forged,” Oshiomhole added.

The retraction comes as the Senate faces intense public scrutiny over its handling of the six-month suspension of the Kogi Central senator for alleged breaches of legislative rules.

Punch and The Guardian reported on the matter, with The Guardian noting that Oshiomhole’s clarification followed pressure from Senate leadership and colleagues who had publicly pushed back on the forgery insinuation.

The development is the latest twist in a suspension saga that has dominated Senate proceedings since May, with Akpoti-Uduaghan’s allies arguing the action was politically motivated.

Sources: TheCable; Punch; The Guardian