Court Stops Senate From Initiating Disciplinary Proceedings Against Senator Natasha

Justice Obiora Egwuatu of the Federal High Court in Abuja has issued an order restraining the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions from proceeding with disciplinary actions against Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi East.

The ruling followed an ex-parte application filed by Akpoti-Uduaghan’s legal team on Tuesday. The Senator had been referred to the Senate’s Ethics Committee after a February 20 altercation during a plenary session, where she rejected her assigned seat, defied Senate President Godswill Akpabio’s order, and repeatedly raised a point of order despite being overruled.

The Senate had subsequently directed that Akpoti-Uduaghan appear before the disciplinary committee. However, during an interview on Arise News Channel on February 28, she claimed her troubles in the Senate began after she allegedly rejected sexual advances from Senate President Akpabio.

Akpoti-Uduaghan’s legal team, which includes Sanusi Musa, M. J. Numa, Y. M. Zakari, B. J. Tabai, Tijanni Jimol, and M. C. Bekee, filed the suit against the Clerk to the National Assembly, the Senate, the Senate President, and the chairman of the Senate Ethics Committee.

The Kogi Senator sought a court order to restrain the Senate and its Ethics Committee from continuing with the investigation into her alleged misconduct. The application also asked the court to declare any actions taken during the pendency of the case as null and void.

The court issued an interim injunction halting the investigation and directed the defendants to show cause within 72 hours why the order should not be made permanent. The case will continue as the legal proceedings unfold.