The Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) has described the withholding of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan’s international passport at the airport as a “normal vetting procedure”. According to the NIS spokesperson, A. S. Akinlabi, the episode was a standard procedure that didn’t take long, and it was applied to all travelers. However, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan claimed that the real reason for the seizure was an instruction from Senate President Godswill Akpabio, which she alleged was politically motivated.
It’s worth noting that the senator’s passport was eventually returned to her after she confronted immigration officers and insisted that there was no legal basis for withholding her travel documents. The incident has sparked a debate over civil liberties and political retaliation in Nigeria.
