Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) has denied reports that it seized the passport of the senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.
NIS spokesperson Akinsola Akinlabi told Channels Television on Tuesday that the lawmaker went through routine immigration checks and was allowed to travel.
“NIS didn’t seize the distinguished senator’s passport, but rather she went through routine immigration checks and was allowed to travel,” Mr Akinlabi said.
He explained that immigration officers were carrying out their statutory duties and that temporarily holding a traveller’s passport for verification did not amount to seizure.
“The NIS officers needed to conduct their checks. They may take your passport to do so, but that doesn’t mean it was seized as alleged,” he added.
“She has since been allowed to travel. Perhaps while waiting for the checks to be completed, she assumed she was being stopped from travelling.”
According to Akinlabi, the senator made a live video during the routine process but did not update her followers after being cleared to fly.
Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan had earlier alleged during a Facebook live broadcast that immigration officers withheld her passport and stopped her from travelling abroad.
In the video, she questioned the officers over what she described as repeated harassment, saying there was no court order restricting her movement.
Moments later, one of the officers returned her passport and she was allowed to continue her journey.
Akpoti-Uduaghan also claimed that the seizure was carried out on the instruction of Senate President Godswill Akpabio, an allegation that the NIS did not address in its response.
This incident follows a similar situation in July when the senator was briefly stopped at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, before being cleared to travel.
