Former Minister of Education Oby Ezekwesili has spoken out about the heated exchange she had with Onyekachi Nwaebonyi, the lawmaker representing Ebonyi North, during a recent Senate Ethics Committee hearing. The altercation took place on Tuesday when tensions flared between the two politicians during a discussion surrounding a petition filed by Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, the suspended senator from Kogi Central.
The disagreement escalated when Ezekwesili told Nwaebonyi, who serves as the deputy chief whip of the Senate, to “shut up” during the proceedings.
Speaking during a televised interview, Ezekwesili provided her account of the incident, explaining that the Senate panel had clarified that the case was under judicial review and thus sub judice. She detailed how the petitioner, Akpoti-Uduaghan, had insisted on not proceeding with her petition until receiving assurances regarding two objections raised. However, the panel interpreted this as a sign that the petitioners were not ready to move forward.
According to Ezekwesili, the situation became more complicated when the panel argued that the case was sub judice because of two related cases pending in court, including one filed by the wife of the Senate President. The panel suggested that, based on this, the proceedings should not continue.
“It was at this point that Dr. Abiola questioned the basis for convening the hearing,” Ezekwesili said. “While this was unfolding, a certain senator whom I will not acknowledge by name spoke up. He declared that since we were unwilling to provide testimony, he was present as a representative of the Senate President, who was the respondent, and that he was prepared to speak, because, in his view, we could not continue in this manner.”
Ezekwesili continued, “In response, I said to him, ‘Can you please shut up?’ because we had just been informed that we were not allowed to speak, yet he was speaking freely without facing any equivalent restriction.”
The former minister emphasized that her remark was prompted by the perceived injustice of the situation. “The justification for silencing us was that we were unwilling to proceed without addressing our objections,” she explained. “When I told him to be quiet, that provoked him, though he was already agitated. His anger stemmed from the belief that we were not taking the matter seriously.”
Ezekwesili also criticized Nwaebonyi’s reaction, labeling it an example of the “indecorous behavior” often displayed by some public officials in the country.
In response, Nwaebonyi rejected Ezekwesili’s version of events, particularly her description of him as a “hooligan” and her order for him to “shut up.” Despite the altercation, the Ebonyi lawmaker expressed that he had no regrets about the incident and maintained that he still respected Ezekwesili as a woman, despite the tensions that arose.
