Suspended Senator, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central, was temporally detained at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja on Thursday morning while preparing to board a flight to the United Kingdom.

According to family sources, immigration officials informed the senator that her name was on a watch list allegedly added at the request of National Assembly leadership.

She was en route to attend her stepson’s graduation in the UK, accompanied by her husband, when officers at the departure terminal blocked her passage, citing “flight risk” concerns.

“She was told that the leadership of the National Assembly requested that she be considered a flight risk,” a family source said. “There’s no court order barring her from travel, and she has never missed a court appearance.”

The incident adds fuel to the ongoing standoff between Senator Natasha and the Senate leadership, particularly after she was recently suspended for protesting her change in seating position.

She has also publicly accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of sexual harassment a claim he has strongly denied. In retaliation, the Federal Government filed two criminal defamation cases against her, which many view as part of a political clampdown.

Eyewitnesses at the airport said Senator Natasha vigorously protested the travel block, making urgent phone calls to immigration and high-level government contacts. After about an hour of delay and tension, she was cleared to board.

“Her passport was eventually stamped and she was allowed to proceed,” one airport witness confirmed.