Sandra Duru alleges Akpabio hired her to target Natasha

A fresh audio recording released by activist Sandra Duru, popularly known as Prof Mgbeke, has triggered a new twist in the prolonged dispute between Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.

Duru alleged that Akpabio engaged her to mount a campaign against Akpoti-Uduaghan, contradicting her earlier public position in which she had accused the Kogi Central senator of attempting to recruit her into a campaign against the Senate President.

A purported nine-minute recording attributed to Duru surfaced online on Friday, with the activist presenting it as part of a conversation involving Akpabio. She said the recording was only a preview of further disclosures.

In the recording and accompanying social media posts, Duru alleged that she had been involved in dealings with senior Nigerian political figures and claimed that the latest disclosure would shed more light on her relationship with Akpabio and the controversy involving Akpoti-Uduaghan.

She also shared excerpts in which a male voice, which she identified as Akpabio’s, allegedly discussed political developments involving former Delta State Governor Ifeanyi Okowa and Senator Ned Nwoko.

One of the reported excerpts has the speaker saying Okowa joined the All Progressives Congress because of concerns over corruption cases rather than sincerity. The content has circulated widely online, but the recording’s authenticity, the identity of the voices and the full context of the conversation have not been independently verified.

The latest development comes more than a year after Duru became involved in the dispute between Akpabio and Akpoti-Uduaghan.

In May 2025, Duru alleged that Akpoti-Uduaghan offered her N200 million to make false allegations against Akpabio. Akpoti-Uduaghan denied the allegation and described Duru’s claims as untrue.

The controversy later expanded, with Akpoti-Uduaghan petitioning the Inspector-General of Police over allegations involving Akpabio and Duru. Her petition called for an investigation into what her lawyers described as a coordinated campaign against her.

Duru has now presented the latest recording as evidence of a different account of her relationship with the Senate President.

However, reports on the newly circulated recording note that neither Akpabio nor his office had, at the time of publication, publicly confirmed or denied the authenticity or contents of the recording.

The latest allegations therefore remain unverified pending responses from the individuals involved and, potentially, independent forensic examination of the recording.