Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan Reclaims Senate Seat After Six-Month Suspension
Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), resumed plenary at the National Assembly on Tuesday after completing her six-month suspension from the Senate.
The lawmaker reclaimed her seat at 11:42 a.m., entering the chamber to a warm welcome from her colleagues and exchanging greetings with several senators. She was accompanied to the National Assembly by civil rights activist Aisha Yesufu, known for her role in the Bring Back Our Girls campaign, who was seen in the Senate gallery. Some of Akpoti-Uduaghan’s supporters, however, were not allowed entry.
Her office — Suite 2.05 in the Senate Wing — was reopened earlier in the day by security officials led by the Deputy Director of the Sergeant-at-Arms, Alabi Adedeji, marking the formal end of her suspension.
Akpoti-Uduaghan was suspended in March 2025 over alleged misconduct after protesting the reassignment of her seat by Senate President Godswill Akpabio. The suspension, which lasted six months, prevented her from taking part in any Senate proceedings.
Although the suspension officially expired in September, her return was delayed by legal and administrative disputes. In July, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja declared the suspension “excessive and unconstitutional,” ordering her reinstatement on the grounds that her constituents had been denied representation.
Despite the ruling, the Senate leadership maintained that she must complete the full suspension period, leading to exchanges between her legal counsel, Michael Jonathan Numa (SAN), and the Clerk to the National Assembly, Kamorudeen Ogunlana.
In a letter dated September 11, Numa demanded her immediate reinstatement, warning that continued defiance of the court order could lead to contempt proceedings. Ogunlana, however, responded that he lacked the authority to override Senate resolutions.
Upon her return to the red chamber on Tuesday, Akpoti-Uduaghan reaffirmed her commitment to representing the people of Kogi Central, declaring that she owed “no apology” for standing by her convictions.
