From Adesuwa Tsan, Abuja
In a dramatic escalation of the battle between the Senate leadership and Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, the Red Chamber on Thursday, July 10, removed the embattled lawmaker as chairman of its Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations.
This move comes barely a week after a Federal High Court ordered her reinstatement.
Akpoti-Uduaghan was suspended in March for six months following a rowdy session during which she resisted a seat change. The situation quickly escalated when she later accused Senate President Godswill Akpabio of sexual harassment during a live television interview.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio announced her removal as chairman while closing Thursday’s plenary session, naming Aniekan Bassey of Akwa Ibom as her replacement.
The move came just days after Akpoti-Uduaghan, who represents Kogi Central, declared her intention to resume legislative duties following a court judgment that declared her suspension unconstitutional.
“We shall resume in the Senate on Tuesday by the grace of God,” she said in a video shared on social media on Sunday, thanking her supporters and celebrating what she described as a victory for democracy.
Her comment followed a ruling by Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja, who, on Friday, July 4, 2025, held that the Senate’s six-month suspension of the senator was excessive and violated her constituents’ constitutional right to representation. The court ordered her immediate reinstatement.
Justice Nyako ruled that the suspension over seating arrangements during plenary was procedurally flawed and lacked constitutional backing.
“Lawmakers are expected to sit for at least 181 days in a legislative year,” she stated, warning that indefinite suspensions undermine the foundation of representative democracy.
However, the court also found Akpoti-Uduaghan guilty of contempt over a Facebook post described as a “satirical apology” to Akpabio, which breached an earlier injunction restraining her from commenting publicly on the ongoing suit. The judge imposed a N5 million fine and ordered her to publish an apology in two national dailies and on her Facebook page within seven days.
Justice Nyako also criticised the Senate’s disciplinary procedures and urged the National Assembly to reform its internal rules to uphold constitutional standards and ensure a fair hearing for all lawmakers.
Akpoti-Uduaghan’s removal as committee chair signals that the battle for her full reinstatement may still be far from over.
