The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the Nigerian Senate to bring back Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, saying her six-month suspension was illegal and too harsh.
Justice Binta Nyako gave the ruling on Friday, calling the suspension “excessive” and without clear legal backing. She said the Senate went beyond its powers.
“The Senate has the authority to discipline its members, but such sanctions must not go so far as to deny constituents their right to representation,” Justice Nyako said
She explained that Nigeria’s National Assembly is only required to sit for 181 days in a year. Suspending a senator for that long, she said, takes away the voice of the people who voted for her, which is against the law.
The Senate had suspended Akpoti-Uduaghan using Chapter 8 of its Standing Orders and Section 14 of the Legislative Houses Powers and Privileges Act. But the judge said those laws do not mention how long a suspension should last. So, the Senate went too far.
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In a separate part of the case, the court ruled in favor of Senate President Godswill Akpabio. The judge said Akpabio was right not to let Akpoti-Uduaghan speak during a Senate meeting because she was not sitting in her assigned seat. This, the judge said, did not violate her rights.
Akpabio also argued that the courts should not interfere in what he called an “internal affair” of the Senate. But the court disagreed.
“Fundamental rights and representation are matters the court can rule on,” Justice Nyako said.
However, the court fined Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan millions of naira for breaking an earlier order. That order had stopped both sides from making public comments about the case, but she still went ahead and spoke publicly.
With the court’s decision, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan is now expected to return to the Senate immediately.