Extension Of Natasha’s Suspension A Desecration Of Democracy — Akande

Former presidential aide, Laolu Akande, has condemned the refusal of the Senate leadership to allow Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan to resume legislative duties after completing her six-month suspension, describing the development as a desecration of democracy.

Speaking on his ‘My Take’ segment on ‘Inside Sources’ TV show on Channels Television on Friday, Akande said the Senate had crossed the line from an internal dispute into what he called “a direct assault on the democratic mandate of the people.”

“After the upper chamber of the National Assembly illegally suspended one of its own members for six months, the Red Chamber has now said even after the expiration of the six months, the Senator cannot resume work. This is simply outrageous,” he said.

Akande, an ex-media aide to former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, maintained that the action was not only unconstitutional but also an “aberration” unknown in any democracy.

“What is now a certain desecration,” he declared, “is the continued denial of the mandate of an elected Senator by the Nigerian Senate, preventing the Senator to do what she was elected for. It is an aberration and it is totally unknown to democracy anywhere. The people cannot elect a representative and a group of Senators decide to prevent such a person from performing a duly delivered mandate. It is wrong.”

He further dismissed the defence that the Senate’s internal rule book grants it powers to take such actions, arguing that the authority of parliament must bow to the superior will of the electorate.

“That rule book gets its powers from among the Senators themselves,” he explained. “But there is a power of the electorate which is and must remain superior. Where is the power to subvert the will of the Kogi people?”

LEADERSHIP reports that Senator Natasha was suspended in March for alleged misconduct, but her suspension formally lapsed in September, sparking fresh controversy over her continued exclusion from Senate proceedings.