The National Assembly has officially reopened the office of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan (PDP, Kogi Central), marking a significant step toward resolving her prolonged dispute with Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
On Tuesday, the National Assembly’s Sergeant-at-Arms, supported by a team of security personnel, restored access to Akpoti-Uduaghan’s Office 205 located within the Senate wing.
This action reinstates her entry to both the National Assembly complex and her designated office, setting the stage for her potential participation in the upcoming plenary session scheduled for October 7, 2025.
Insiders revealed that this development followed a Senate leadership meeting held on Monday. “A motion is expected to be presented, and unless there are objections, the Minority Leader of the Senate, Senator Abba Moro (PDP, Benue South), will introduce the motion requiring her to issue an apology, which will then be seconded and considered,” the source disclosed.
Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan, formerly chair of the Senate Committee on Diaspora and NGOs, faced a six-month suspension in March after she protested the reassignment of her senatorial seat by Akpabio on February 20. The Senate cited violations of its Standing Orders as the basis for her suspension.
Although her suspension ended in September, she challenged the decision in court. In July, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja declared the suspension “excessive and unconstitutional,” ordering her reinstatement. The judge emphasized that extended suspensions effectively disenfranchise constituents by denying them representation.
Despite the court ruling, Senate leaders maintained that she must complete the full suspension term. Consequently, when she attempted to resume her duties, she was barred from entering the premises.
Her legal counsel, Senior Advocate Michael Jonathan Numa, escalated the issue with a letter dated September 11 to the Clerk of the National Assembly, Kamorudeen Ogunlana.
In the letter, Numa warned that failure to reinstate Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan by September 15 would compel them to pursue legal remedies, including contempt proceedings, disciplinary measures for breaches of the Public Officers’ Code of Conduct, and claims related to inciting unrest with potential national security consequences.
Ogunlana responded by clarifying that his office could not act independently without a formal Senate resolution. “The Clerk’s office functions solely as an administrative body, executing the Senate’s directives in line with their resolutions, Standing Orders, and the Nigerian Constitution (1999, as amended),” he stated.
Through his Director of Information, Bullah Audu Bi-Allah, Ogunlana reiterated, “The authority to decide whether Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan may resume her legislative responsibilities without a fresh Senate resolution after her suspension expires rests exclusively with the Senate, not the Clerk’s office.”
With her office now accessible once again ahead of the legislative session, attention turns to the October plenary to observe if the Senate will entertain the motion for her reinstatement and whether she will be required to apologize before reclaiming her seat.
