Senate Suspension: Natasha Appears In Court As Judge Rules June 27

The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja presided by Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako has fixed June 27 to deliver judgement in the suit filed by the lawmaker representing Kogi Central, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, seeking vacate the six-month suspension imposed on her by the Senate.

The court fixed the date for judgement on Tuesday after listening to submission from all parties in the suit.

Defendants in the suit marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/384/2025, include the Clerk of the National Assembly, the Senate, the Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio and the Chairman of Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions, Senator Nedamwen Imasuen.

The plaintiff, through her lawyer, Mr. Jubril Okutekpa, SAN, urged the court to invalidate her suspension which she said was carried out in disobedience to a valid court order, while on the other hand, the defendants challenged the jurisdiction of the court to meddle in what they termed as an internal affair of the Senate.

The defendants also accused the plaintiff of breaching an order made by the court on April 4, which barred the parties from making public utterances on the matter pending before it.

Senate President Akpabio, through his lawyer, Mr. Kehinde Ogunwumiju, SAN, specifically drew the attention of the court to what he described as “a satirical apology” the plaintiff tendered to him on her Facebook page.

Akpabio insisted that the said apology made mockery of the order of the court.

Meanwhile, before she adjourned the matter for judgement, Justice Nyako said she would first consider the issue of contempt that was raised by the parties before deciding all the preliminary objections.

The trial judge stressed that Natasha’s suit raised “recondite issues of law” that would require judicial interpretation.

LEADERSHIP recalls that Justice Nyako took over the matter following the recusal of the previous judge, Obiora Egwuatu, who had in a ruling on March 25, returned the case-file after the Senate President accused him of bias.

Justice Egwuatu had on March 4, issued an interim order that stopped the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions from going ahead with the disciplinary proceeding that was initiated against Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan over an allegation that she flouted rules of the legislative house.

He held that the disciplinary process should be placed on hold, pending the determination of the suit brought before him by the embattled lawmaker.

More so, Justice Egwuatu gave defendants in the matter, 72 hours to show cause why it should not issue an order of interlocutory injunction to stop them from probing the plaintiff for alleged misconduct, without affording her the privileges stipulated in the 1999 Constitution, as amended, the Senate Standing Order 2023, and the Legislative Houses (Powers and Privileges) Act.

The interim orders followed an ex-parte application and an affidavit of urgency that was brought before the court by the lawmaker.

However, despite the orders of the court, the Senate Committee held its sitting and suspended the plaintiff for six months.