The Nigerian Senate on Thursday, July 10, removed Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan as Chairperson of its Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations, just days after a Federal High Court ordered her reinstatement following a six-month suspension.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio made the announcement at the close of Thursday’s plenary, naming Senator Aniekan Bassey of Akwa Ibom as her replacement. The development marks a new twist in the escalating tensions between Akpoti-Uduaghan and the Senate leadership.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, who represents Kogi Central, was suspended in March 2025 following a chaotic plenary session in which she resisted a seat reassignment. The incident spiraled further when she later accused Akpabio of sexual harassment during a live television interview.
Her removal as committee chair comes less than a week after Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja ruled that the suspension was unconstitutional and violated her constituents’ right to representation.
“We shall resume in the Senate on Tuesday by the grace of God,” Akpoti-Uduaghan declared in a video posted on social media on Sunday, July 6, while thanking supporters and hailing the judgment as a win for democracy.
In her ruling on Friday, July 4, Justice Nyako held that the Senate acted outside its constitutional powers, stating that the punishment was disproportionate to the alleged offence of disrupting seating arrangements.
“Lawmakers are expected to sit for at least 181 days in a legislative year,” the judge noted, warning that such prolonged suspensions threaten the principles of representative governance.
However, the court also found Akpoti-Uduaghan in contempt for violating a prior order that barred her from commenting on the case. A Facebook post, described by the court as a “satirical apology” to the Senate President, was deemed a breach of that injunction.
As a result, the judge imposed a ₦5 million fine and ordered her to issue a formal apology in two national newspapers and on her Facebook page within seven days.
Justice Nyako further criticised the Senate’s disciplinary process and called for urgent reforms to ensure due process and uphold constitutional standards within the National Assembly.
Despite the court ruling in her favour, Akpoti-Uduaghan’s removal from the committee chairmanship suggests her legal and political battle for full reinstatement is far from over.
