Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan’s international passport was briefly seized by Nigerian immigration officers at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on Wednesday morning, July 24, causing a momentary travel scare before she eventually boarded a British Airways flight to London.
According to eyewitnesses at the airport, the senator, representing Kogi Central, arrived at the international terminal with her husband, Chief Emmanuel Uduaghan, and was stopped by immigration officials as she was about to board a London-bound flight. The immigration officers were said to have flagged her as a “national security risk.”
Eyewitnesses say the Senator remained calm and composed throughout the ordeal, insisting that the officers had no legal authority to seize her passport.
READ ALSO:
Tinubu Government Developing Southern Nigeria At Expense Of North — Kwankwaso
UK Doctors Begin Five-Day Strike Despite PM’s Plea
‘Nurturing Young Talents,’ Lagos, PlotWeaver Unveil Storytelling Contest
NCDMB’s Exec Sec Inspects Training of 305 Youths At Centre For Marine And Offshore
ADC, APC In War of Words Over Tinubu’s Latest Appointments
Ex-First Lady Patience Jonathan’s Aides Remain In Jail As Case Suffers 42 Adjournments
“The court never authorised this. You have no right to hold my passport,” she was overheard telling the officers, while urging them to allow her to proceed.
Her husband was spotted making a series of urgent phone calls as the delay dragged on. Minutes later, the senator’s passport was returned without any formal explanation, allowing her to swiftly proceed through immigration and board her flight just in time.
