Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the Nigerian Senate to immediately recall Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, the lawmaker representing Kogi Central, who was suspended for six months.
Delivering judgment on Friday, Justice Nyako ruled that the suspension was excessive and unconstitutional, effectively depriving the people of Kogi Central of representation in the National Assembly for nearly the entirety of a legislative calendar.
The judge specifically faulted Chapter 8 of the Senate Standing Rules and Section 14 of the Legislative Houses (Powers and Privileges) Act, describing both as overreaching.
She noted that neither provision established a maximum duration for suspending an elected lawmaker, thereby creating room for abuse.
Justice Nyako emphasized that since lawmakers are expected to sit for a total of 181 days per legislative year, a six-month suspension — roughly 180 days — amounted to denying Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan’s constituents their constitutional right to representation.
“The Senate has the right to discipline its members,” Justice Nyako stated, “but such punishment must be proportionate and must not infringe on the rights of citizens to be duly represented.”
On the issue of whether the case constituted an internal affair of the Senate, the court dismissed the objection raised by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
Akpabio had argued that the judiciary lacked the jurisdiction to interfere in parliamentary matters. Justice Nyako disagreed, stating that the matter had implications on constitutional rights and therefore warranted judicial intervention.
The court, however, upheld Akpabio’s action during plenary when he refused to allow Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan to speak from a seat not officially assigned to her, stating that procedural rules in plenary must be followed.
The ruling marks a significant victory for the embattled lawmaker and may set a precedent limiting the extent to which legislative bodies can suspend elected representatives.
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