Nigerian Senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan has shown her discontentment over the appeal filed by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, seeking to overturn a Federal High Court ruling that ordered her reinstatement to the Senate.
Akpabio, through his legal team, approached the Court of Appeal in Abuja to challenge the July 4 judgment delivered by Justice Binta Nyako, which nullified Akpoti-Uduaghan’s six-month suspension from the Red Chamber and declared it “excessive” and without legal basis.
Filed on July 14, the appeal arose from suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/384/2025 instituted by the embattled Kogi Central lawmaker to challenge her suspension.
The Senate President is urging the appellate court to set aside the judgment, arguing in an 11-ground appeal that the trial court erred in assuming jurisdiction over what he described as the internal affairs of the National Assembly—matters which, he contends, are beyond judicial interference under Section 251 of the 1999 Constitution.
Akpabio also faulted the court for dismissing his preliminary objection and issuing orders affecting parliamentary procedures. He maintained that actions taken during plenary, including suspensions and resolutions, are protected by the Legislative Houses (Powers and Privileges) Act and should not be subject to litigation.
He further argued that Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suit was premature, as she had failed to exhaust the internal redress mechanisms of the Senate, particularly the Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions, as stipulated in the Senate Standing Orders, 2023 (as amended).
He also accused the trial court of breaching his right to a fair hearing by raising issues not canvassed by either party—specifically, whether the suspension was excessive—and proceeding to recommend her recall without allowing both parties to address the issue.
On July 4, 2025, Justice Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja nullified the six-month suspension as excessive—ordering the Senate to recall her.
The court fined the suspended lawmaker N5m for contempt over a social media post but upheld that constituents’ representation had been denied by her suspension.