Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan Barred from Senate Despite Court Order, Vows Legal Action

The suspended senator representing Kogi Central Senatorial District, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has vowed to drag the leadership of the Senate before the appellate court after she was barred from accessing the National Assembly complex on Tuesday.

Fuming, the senator told journalists that she would consult her legal team immediately to kick-start the process, stressing that it was a violation of the recent judgment calling for her reinstatement.

The decision came after she was denied entry to the National Assembly chambers, despite an admittedly vague court order which faulted the long suspension slammed on the senator, while maintaining that the Senate has the power to punish any of its members who breaches its rules.

Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan also questioned the basis for her initial suspension, saying, “Even the suspension ab initio was fraudulent— it was faulty.”

She went on to express her profound disappointment on two fronts; that the Senate denied her entry into the chambers to resume her duties and that there was an overwhelming number of armed policemen outside the premises — fully kitted with guns — attempting to intimidate an unarmed female senator. No fewer than five police patrol vehicles were stationed at strategic positions leading to the entrance to the Assembly complex.

On her next line of action, she stated, “Going forward, I will have a meeting with my legal team so they can proceed to the appellate court to seek interpretation of what just happened. I am a law-abiding citizen.”

Akpoti-Uduaghan also condemned the Senate’s actions, calling it an act of contempt of court by the Senate under its President, Godswill Akpabio.

She said, “Akpabio cannot be greater than the Nigerian Constitution. I want Nigerians to know that the Office of the Senate President doesn’t give me legitimacy as a senator.”

The Senate, however, has reaffirmed its position, stating that its interpretation of the judgement, which was controversially framed as an advisory recommending her reinstatement rather than an enforceable directive, did not suggest that the court ordered her to be recalled. Further, the Senate insists that it needs to review the Certified True Copy of the ruling and cites a separate contempt ruling — a 5 million naira fine over a satirical Facebook post — as a justification for stalling Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan’s return. 

It must be made clear that the contempt ruling is a separate legal matter and has nothing to do with the senator’s right to resume her duties. By deliberately conflating these two separate legal tracks, the Senate appears to be creating yet another artificial hurdle to resist judicial authority. 

Additionally, several critics including former Labour Party vice presidential candidate Datti Baba-Ahmed, have described the efforts put into stopping the senator from resuming her duties as a gross display of misplaced priorities.