As controversy deepens over the alleged sexual misconduct scandal involving Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, a Nigerian journalist and media activist, Maazi Obinna Oparaku Akuwudike, has levelled serious accusations against self-acclaimed activist Sandra Duru, also known as “Prof Mgbeke.” Obinna alleges that Duru is a serial blackmailer who has extorted millions from prominent Nigerians, including a former Deputy Governor of Imo State.
Speaking during a live appearance on journalist Adeola Fayehun’s YouTube programme on Monday, May 12, 2025, Obinna revealed that Duru had approached him with an offer of ₦2.5 million to produce a damaging media campaign against Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan. He claimed the job, presented as a professional contract, included producing multiple documentaries with music backing to discredit the senator. However, he said he backed out after discovering Duru’s alleged misrepresentation and malicious intent.
Obinna said he became alarmed after listening to Duru’s livestream, where she alleged that Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan had confessed there was no sexual harassment and that the accusations against Akpabio were fabricated. She also claimed that the senator boasted of paying former Minister of Education Dr. Oby Ezekwesili and the association of women lawyers to defend her—allegations Obinna dismissed as “fictional and deliberately misleading.”
A central part of Obinna’s revelation was a voice recording played during the programme, which he claimed featured Chief Oby Ndukwe, President of Citizens Quest—who had recently defended Senate President Akpabio on Channels Television. In the recording, the voice, alleged to be Ndukwe’s, reportedly thanked Duru and acknowledged receiving financial support—purportedly from the Senate President—for her public defence.
Obinna further accused Duru of twisting narratives to incite ethnic tensions. He claimed she deliberately lied about a conversation between her and Senator Natasha, alleging the senator made anti-Yoruba comments—remarks Obinna says were never part of the actual conversation. “She deliberately twisted the message to stoke ethnic division and provoke the Yoruba against Natasha,” he alleged.
Addressing questions about his motivation, Obinna said he was driven by conscience and a desire to expose falsehood. He expressed willingness to cooperate with law enforcement agencies in any future investigation and warned of the dangers of unchecked blackmail in Nigeria’s political space.
He concluded by alleging that Sandra Duru boasted of support from Senate President Akpabio and had a troubling pattern of secretly recording conversations to use for blackmail against high-profile individuals.
Neither Senator Akpabio, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan, nor Sandra Duru has issued an official response to Obinna’s claims at the time of filing this report.
