Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has ordered the Nigerian Senate to recall the suspended lawmaker representing Kogi Central, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.
The Genius Media Nigeria reports that Justice Nyako, while delivering judgement on Friday, stated that Natasha’s six-month suspension was excessive.
She faulted the provision of Chapter 8 of the Senate Standing Rules as well as section 14 of the Legislative Houses, Powers & Privileges Act, declaring both as overreaching, stressing that the two legislations failed to specify the maximum period that a serving lawmaker could be suspended from office.
Justice Nyako stated that since lawmakers have a total of 181 days to sit in every legislative circle, the six-month suspension handed to Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan was akin to pushing her away from her responsibilities to her constituents for about 180 days.
The court 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.
The court ruled 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.
She 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.
