A Federal High Court in Abuja has delivered a verdict in favour of Sen. Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, ordering the Senate to recall the suspended Kogi Central senator.
The court, in a judgement that was delivered by Justice Binta Nyako, described as “excessive”, the six-month suspension that was slammed on the lawmaker by the Senate.
It faulted the provisions of Chapter 8 of the Senate Standing Rules as well as Section 14 of the Legislative Houses, Powers and Privileges Act, declaring both as overreaching.
The court stressed that the two legislations failed to specify the maximum period that a serving lawmaker could be suspended from office.
According to the court, since lawmakers have a total of 181 days to sit in every legislative circle, the six-month suspension handed to Akpoti-Uduaghan was akin to pushing her away from her responsibilities to her constituents for about 180 days.
It held that though the Senate has the power to punish any of its members who err, such sanction must not be excessive to deprive the constituents of their right to be represented.
Nevertheless, the court held that the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, was not wrong to have denied the plaintiff who was not on the official seat that was allotted to her, the opportunity to speak during plenary.
Justice Nyako equally dismissed Akpabio’s contention that the court lacked the jurisdiction to entertain the suit which he said bordered on an internal affair of the Senate.
Earlier in the ruling, the court awarded N5 million fine against Sen. Akpoti-Uduaghan for acting in breach of its order that barred the parties from making public statements pertaining to the subject matter of the suit.
It further ordered her to within seven days, publish an apology to it in two national dailies.
Persecondnews recalls that Akpoti-Uduaghan had gone to court after a confrontation with Senate President Akpabio on February 20, during which she was allegedly denied the opportunity to speak and later referred to the Senate Ethics Committee.
In a February 28 television interview, she claimed that her troubles in the Senate began after she rejected advances from the Senate President.
Through an ex-parte motion, she urged the court to declare any actions taken by the committee—including her suspension—null, void, and of no effect pending the resolution of her suit.
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