Senate President Godswill Akpabio has successfully quelled widespread and persistent rumors regarding his alleged ill-health, collapse, and even death, by presiding over the Senate plenary session today, 16 Tuesday, December 2025.
The rumors, which had circulated aggressively across social media and certain online platforms for over a week, claimed that Akpabio collapsed and was subsequently flown on a private jet to London for intensive medical treatment.
Akpabio directly responded to the claims by posting photographs on his verified X (formerly Twitter) account showing him actively presiding over the day’s plenary session and interacting with fellow senators. He confirmed, “Today, Tuesday, December 16, 2025, I presided over Plenary, where Ambassadorial nominees from President Bola Tinubu were screened and confirmed.”
Following a motion raised by Senator Titus Zam (APC, Benue North-West), the Senate unanimously passed a resolution condemning the malicious spread of the false reports. The Senate directed the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, and the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS) to urgently investigate the origin and motives behind the viral rumors.
Senator Zam described the rumors as “alarming and unacceptable,” emphasizing that the Senate President, as the nation’s number three citizen, should not be subjected to such misinformation.
Reacting to the resolution, Akpabio noted that he was not the first Nigerian leader to be falsely reported dead, but acknowledged the challenge posed by irresponsible social media reporting, describing it as “garbage in, garbage out.”
The motion to investigate the promoters of the fake news was overwhelmingly adopted, with the lawmakers seeking sanctions against those found responsible to deter future acts of misinformation against public officials.
