•Activist Aisha Yesufu and IGP Kayode Egbetokun
Renowned human rights activist, Aisha Yesufu, has strongly criticised the Nigeria Police Force following yesterday’s incident involving Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan of Kogi Central, who was denied entry into the National Assembly Complex.
Although currently serving a six-month suspension, Akpoti-Uduaghan argued that a recent court judgment had nullified the sanction and ordered her reinstatement, reports Daily Independent.
Taking to her official X (formerly Twitter) handle, Yesufu blasted the conduct of security operatives at the National Assembly gate, accusing them of abandoning their duty to protect democratic institutions in favor of serving oppressive political interests.
According to her, the same police force that aids political tyranny today will one day beg ordinary Nigerians for support when their own rights and welfare come under threat.
“One day you will beg Nigerians to come out and protest for your sake, and they will remind you of how you stood against them when they needed you,” she wrote.
Yesufu, a key figure in several national protests including #EndSARS and #BringBackOurGirls, warned that the continued use of security agencies to intimidate elected representatives and suppress civil liberties was a dangerous slide toward authoritarian rule.
She lamented that the police, instead of upholding the constitution, have become willing instruments in the hands of anti-democratic forces.
Her reaction followed widespread backlash after Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan was prevented from accessing the National Assembly Complex by police officers, despite her “status” as a lawmaker representing Kogi Central. Although there were several opinions on the judgment which she acted upon.
The reason for the police action remains unclear, and no official statement had been issued by the Force as at press time.
The development has reignited public discourse around political intimidation, systemic gender bias, and the growing trend of using security forces as instruments of suppression in Nigeria’s fragile democracy.
It also comes amid divided public opinion over the recent court judgment that Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan cited as the basis for resuming plenary, with critics and supporters offering conflicting interpretations of its implications.
