From Natasha Akpoti to Sophia Egbueje: The Many Layers of Misogny

In a tale as old as time, Senator Natasha Akpoti sparked a countrywide reaction when she revealed during an interview her encounters with sexual harassment at the hands of the Senate President. I wasn’t the least bit surprised. In 2022, while compiling a presentation on initiatives that should be pushed for women for an NGO I was working in, one of my key points was Better Participation of Women in Politics.

One of the reasons women typically shy away from politics is their increased vulnerability to sexual harassment at the top levels. The presentation also tackled the stigma that comes with being a woman in politics and how they are always at the receiving end of slurs: ASHEWO. PROSTITUTE. Every bit of work and every achievement can easily be smeared with a mere insinuation that it was attained through sexual favors.

Another reason this hit close to home was that the head of the organization I was working with had been part of Natasha Akpoti’s campaign team in 2019 when she ran for governor in Kogi State. We were told of the violence Natasha suffered simply because she dared to contest. My former boss recounted an incident at a town hall in Kogi where, while Natasha was addressing the citizens, armed gunmen stormed the venue with the intent to cause grievous harm or even kill her.

“They had to lift and carry Natasha out of that place. It was scary.” This was quoted verbatim from my former boss.

I knew little about Natasha beyond seeing her on TV screens and reading about how she was the sole female candidate in that election. Yet here we are in 2025, and Natasha is still fighting misogyny in politics, albeit in different forms. The most painful, though unsurprising, part is how women in the political scene, who should understand how credible her story is, were the first to turn against her.

From weak arguments about her insubordination to outright condemnation of her character. And today, as I was compiling this, a former female senator brazenly declared that Natasha’s statement about sexual harassment was a sign of weakness because, apparently, a woman who has risen to such a level in politics should be beyond such experiences and considered equal to her male counterparts.

It is disappointing that this statement came from a former senator, worse still, a woman. The idea that a woman can be above sexual harassment is a blatant lie. Somewhere, in a dingy bedroom with dirty feet and a soiled mattress, a man is tweeting lecherously about Natasha, detailing what he would do to her if he ever got the chance. In 2020, a former NDDC MD granted an interview in which she recounted slapping the Senate President for sexually harassing her. Does that make her weak too?

It is alarming that someone like Florence Ita-Giwa, a woman I grew up watching on NTA who was a beacon of hope for many young girls aspiring to enter politics, would so naively believe that women will ever be regarded as equals by these same men. We all remember Dino Melaye’s fiasco with the then-Senator (now First Lady) Remi Tinubu in 2016. He threatened to beat her up and impregnate her. See how quickly and effortlessly he reduced Senator Remi Tinubu, his counterpart, to nothing more than her gender—a gender he saw as one that could be physically and sexually assaulted.

I am glad Natasha has the strong support of her husband. It would have been even more disgraceful if her own support system had turned on her the way so many others did. People blamed her rudeness, but really, who wouldn’t be frustrated when every bill and motion she pushes is disregarded simply because she refused to get sexually intimate with her superior?

It is disheartening that neither money, position, nor knowledge can shield women from misogyny. It takes different forms, which is why it is crucial for women to stand together and look out for one another. It is hypocritical to say, “Okay, but what if they are lying?” That still does not justify the swift condemnation of Natasha by legions of women who could have simply remained silent if they could not publicly support her. Ironically, these same women, these political pick-mes, fail to realize that misogyny is a revolving door every woman will pass through at some point in her life. It may be sturdier for some, narrower for others, but every woman will walk through it. No amount of wealth can cushion or blanket its effects, just as beauty cannot shield you. It is always there.

In fact, some of these women could have also been victims of sexual harassment and various forms of misogyny in politics. They may be attacking Natasha Akpoti because, in their minds, “Why does she think she is special? Me that did not tell anybody about my own, am I a fool?”

And to think that another woman, Sophie Egbueje, though not a politician, is also currently being ridiculed and subjected to insults and character assassination over a broken agreement with Burna Boy. Boys are celebrating Burna for his smartness in “chopping her free.” If that isn’t lethal misogyny, I don’t know what is. Grown men on Twitter are joining in, waxing poetic about how they admire Burna’s astuteness while completely ignoring the real issue—a broken agreement and dishonesty. What’s worse is that this woman was minding her business until she was relentlessly pursued by this man and promised a luxury car, only for her to experience this.

It is interesting to hear her declare in a leaked voice note that she would get it herself, and it is also admirable that she is handling this with grace. But I hope we can all see how non-linear these issues are.

The brand of misogyny you experience may differ from mine, but that does not make you matter any less. Neither does it diminish its impact. Just because you are subtly ignored and told to step down while your male counterparts are encouraged to push forward does not mean your struggle is insignificant compared to another woman being beaten black and blue.

As we approach International Women’s Day on Friday and celebrate women throughout March, let us remember: misogyny is always around the corner, waiting to strike.