The Senate has been urged by an Abuja federal high court to reevaluate recalling Kogi Central senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan from suspension.
The presiding judge, Binta Nyako, called the senate’s six-month suspension of Akpoti-Uduaghan “excessive” in a ruling on Friday.
Section 14 of the Legislative Houses, Powers & Privileges Act and Chapter 8 of the Senate Standing Rules were criticized by Nyako as “overreaching.”
The court noted that the maximum amount of time that a serving lawmaker could be suspended from office was not specified in the two pertinent legislation.
It concluded that Akpoti-Uduaghan’s six-month ban essentially denied her the chance to perform her legislative duties for almost the whole session, as lawmakers are legally required to sit for a total of 181 days during each parliamentary session.
The court pointed out that this was equivalent to depriving her constituents of their right to representation.
The court affirmed the senate’s power to reprimand its members, but it emphasized that any punishment must be appropriate and must not infringe upon the citizens’ right to senate representation.
However, because Akpoti-Uduaghan was not seated in her officially designated position at the time, the court determined that Senate President Godswill Akpabio had good reason to deny her a chance to speak during plenary.
Additionally, Nyako rejected Akpabio’s assertion that the complaint was an internal senate matter and denied his argument that the court had jurisdiction over the case.
BACKGROUND
In order to prevent the Senate committee on ethics and public petitions from initiating disciplinary action against her, Akpoti-Uduaghan had filed a lawsuit.
Following an ex parte motion submitted by the senator’s attorney, the judge granted an injunction on March 4 prohibiting the Senate from initiating disciplinary proceedings against Akpoti-Uduaghan.
The defendants must appear and provide justification for why an interlocutory injunction should not be granted against them within 72 hours of the order being served, the judge decided.
The senator from Kogi was suspended for six months by the Senate for alleged serious misconduct two days after the ruling.
The judgment came after the ethics, privileges, and public petitions committee adopted the report.
The sitting judge, Obiora Egwuatu, revoked his March 4 ruling prohibiting the Senate from suspending the senator from Kogi on March 19.
Following the presence of attorneys for the parties involved in the case, Egwuatu declared his intention to withdraw himself from the case during the March 25 court session.
Egwuatu revealed that Akpabio’s accusation of bias against him was the reason behind his choice.
He directed that the case file be reassigned to the federal high court’s head judge, John Tsoho.
Nyako was then given the case again.
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