Court orders Senate to reinstate suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan

The Federal High Court in Abuja on Friday ruled that the Nigerian Senate exceeded its constitutional powers by suspending Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan for six months, ordering her immediate reinstatement.

Delivering the judgment, Justice Binta Nyako described the suspension as “excessive” and lacking a firm legal basis.

The court held that neither Chapter 8 of the Senate Standing Orders nor Section 14 of the Legislative Houses (Powers and Privileges) Act prescribes a maximum duration for suspension, rendering the Senate’s action overreaching.

Nyako also noted that the National Assembly is mandated to sit for 181 days annually, and suspending a lawmaker for nearly that entire period effectively silences their constituency. She declared such action unconstitutional.

“While the Senate has the authority to discipline its members, such sanctions must not go so far as to deny constituents their right to representation,” the judge stated.

In a related matter, the court ruled in favour of Senate President Godswill Akpabio, affirming that his refusal to allow Akpoti-Uduaghan to speak—because she was not in her designated seat—did not violate her rights.

Nyako, however, rejected Akpabio’s argument that the judiciary should not meddle in what he termed an “internal affair” of the legislature, asserting that fundamental rights and representation fall within the court’s jurisdiction.

In a separate ruling, the court fined Akpoti-Uduaghan millions of naira for violating an earlier order that barred both parties from making public comments on the case.