Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan has risen above hate through Voice, Determination, and Mandate (VDM).
When hate rises, let courage rise higher. When opposition comes, let the people’s mandate speak louder.
There are moments in politics when the noise becomes louder than the truth, when propaganda is deliberately amplified, and when people who are uncomfortable with a rising political figure begin looking for every possible way to weaken her image. But there is something propaganda cannot easily destroy the personal experiences of the people. This is how I see the story of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan and her relationship with the people of Kogi Central.
For me, the story of Natasha is no longer just about politics. It is about resilience, representation, empowerment and the determination of a people to stand behind the person they believe represents their interests.
Over the past few years, Senator Natasha has faced political controversies, legal battles, public attacks and a six-month Senate suspension. The suspension became a major national political issue in 2025, and the matter subsequently went through the courts. In February 2026, the Court of Appeal upheld the Senate’s authority to suspend her, while setting aside a 5 million contempt fine imposed in the earlier proceedings.
But through all of these challenges, Natasha continued to remain politically active and connected to her constituents. That, to me, is one of the most remarkable parts of her story.
In every political contest, there will always be people who disagree with a politician. That is normal in a democracy. But what concerns me is when political disagreements allegedly become attempts to deliberately destroy a person’s reputation through coordinated online attacks.
There have been allegations from supporters and political observers that some prominent political interests have sponsored bloggers and online platforms to portray Senator Natasha negatively.
Can negative publicity erase what the people have personally experienced?
Can a blog post remove the road Natasha has constructed ?
Can propaganda erase her school projects?
Can social-media attacks take away an empowerment programme from its beneficiaries?
Can someone sitting behind a phone erase the memories of people who have received support, skills, infrastructure or opportunities?
The answer is No.
People can read whatever they want online, but at the end of the day, the people of Kogi Central can also look around their communities and make their own assessment.
Reports have documented several constituency interventions associated with Senator Natasha, including modern markets, solar-powered water and street-lighting projects, education interventions and youth empowerment programmes.
In 2025, for example, reports documented an empowerment programme involving 250 constituents trained in areas including drone technology, welding, fabrication, renewable-energy installation and data analytics.
In 2026, another reported initiative involved more than 100 beneficiaries receiving electric vehicles after technical and operational training.
These are not merely social-media arguments. They are interventions that beneficiaries can physically point to.
I also believe the political journey of Senator Natasha has demonstrated an unusual level of resilience.
From the controversies surrounding her election victory to the legal battles that followed, the Senate suspension, the attempted recall controversy and the continuing political attacks, she has had to navigate one difficult chapter after another.
In March 2025, INEC received a petition seeking her recall, while other Kogi Central constituents publicly rejected attempts to remove her and expressed support for her continued representation.
Whatever one’s political opinion may be about these events, they demonstrate that her political journey has not been without serious challenges.
Yet she remained standing.
There is an economic principle that whenever people have alternatives, choosing one option means giving up the benefits of another. Economists refer to this as opportunity cost.
Politics is also about choices.
When 2027 comes, the people of Kogi Central will have alternatives before them. They will look at the candidates, their records, their promises, their character, their relationships with the people and what they have actually delivered.
For me, Senator Natasha represents the choice that many people in Kogi Central have already begun to identify with.
I do not believe that the politics of 2027 should be about buying votes or attempting to manipulate the electoral process.
No candidate should need to buy the conscience of the people.
No politician should need to corrupt an electoral process.
And no amount of money should be allowed to replace the free choice of voters.
What should matter is performance and accountability.
Senator Natasha has already begun her 2027 campaign structure, including the inauguration of a PDP campaign council in Kogi Central in August 2026.
But beyond political structures, I believe her strongest campaign material is the record she leaves behind in the communities.
The roads, markets, water projects, streetlights, the educational interventions, the empowerment programmes, the opportunities created for young people and women, the people whose lives have been touched.
Those things cannot be deleted by a blogger.
One of the things we admire about Senator Natasha’s approach is the emphasis she has placed on reaching different parts of Kogi Central.
In 2024, she announced the appointment of 100 constituency aides drawn from the 57 wards of Kogi Central, saying the purpose was to strengthen representation across the district.
This is significant because representation should not exist only inside the National Assembly chamber. A senator’s responsibility is also about maintaining communication with the people and understanding what is happening in the communities.
Reports have also documented stakeholders and elders from Kogi Central publicly praising her development initiatives, including projects involving markets, schools, water supply, streetlights, healthcare facilities and youth and women empowerment.
She has also spoken publicly about her intention to continue focusing on youth and women empowerment, education, healthcare and legislative advocacy.
Another area supporters point to is the effort to connect constituents with opportunities beyond constituency projects, including appointments and opportunities at the federal level.
Where specific appointments are concerned, however, I believe we should always identify the appointee, position and appointing authority rather than make a general claim that cannot be independently verified.
The principle remains important a senator should use the access provided by public office to open doors for constituents, connect qualified people to opportunities and ensure that the people they represent are not forgotten at the federal level. That is the kind of representation I believe the people deserve.
What stands out to me most is that Senator Natasha’s tenure has not been without obstacles.
Yet she has continued to pursue constituency interventions.
Her supporters point to the fact that even during periods of intense political controversy, projects and empowerment initiatives continued. One report on her second year in office quoted her as saying that politics is for elections but performance should ultimately impact everyone, regardless of political affiliation.
This is why I call this piece “Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan: Rising Above Hate.”
Not because every criticism against her is automatically false.
Not because she should be above accountability.
And not because supporters should refuse to listen to legitimate criticism.
Rather, because I believe political criticism should be measured against facts and performance, not simply against propaganda.
Senator Natasha has already declared her intention to seek another term, and the PDP affirmed her as its Kogi Central senatorial candidate in May 2026 after a district-wide process across the 57 wards.
Now the responsibility ultimately belongs to the people.
They will decide what they remember.
They will decide what they believe.
They will decide which record matters to them. And they will decide who receives their votes in 2027.
For me, the greatest political campaign is not necessarily the one with the most money. It is the record that people can see, touch and testify about.
If the people believe Senator Natasha has served them well, no amount of negative publicity can make them forget their own experiences.
No amount of online arguments can erase the impact of a project in a community.
No amount of political noise can substitute for the power of the ballot.
And no political actor, blogger or influencer should ever underestimate the ability of ordinary citizens to make their own democratic choice.
We are aware of how so many bloggers has been paid to be blackmailing Senator Natasha in other to cause distractions among the people especially the supporters of Senator Natasha Akpoti. But the good people of Kogi Central stand firm with Senator Natasha Akpoti and vow to reelect her back to Senate 2027.
I believe that God ultimately determines the affairs of men, but I also believe that democracy gives the people the responsibility to make their choice through the ballot.
Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan has faced storms, controversies and political battles. But she remains standing, and her supporters remain determined to defend what they believe is their mandate.
The noise may continue.
The attacks may continue.
The propaganda may continue.
The paid bloggers and contents creator may continue.
But in the end, the people will have the final democratic voice.
– Activist Ahmed Dinar Abdulmumin
ahmedabdulmumuni100a@gmail.com
