The Court of Appeal in Abuja reserved judgment on Friday in appeals filed by Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan challenging a Federal High Court decision that nullified her six-month Senate suspension as unconstitutional and excessive.
A three-member panel heard arguments after parties adopted briefs; Akpabio's team, led by Kehinde Ogunwumiju (SAN), contested the lower court's jurisdiction, arguing Senate disciplinary matters fall under internal privileges protected by Section 251 of the 1999 Constitution and the Legislative Houses Act.
Akpoti-Uduaghan's six-ground appeal targets a N5 million contempt fine from Justice Binta Nyako over a satirical Facebook post, claiming it violated her rights during her suit (FHC/ABJ/CS/384/2025) to halt Senate probes into alleged misconduct. Akpabio withdrew one cross-appeal (CA/ABJ/CJ/739/2025CA/A/2025) as overtaken by events since her Senate resumption, leaving cases marked CA/ABJ/CJ/739/2025 and CA/ABJ/CJ/1208/2025 pending.
The dispute stems from Akpabio's 11-ground challenge to the reinstatement order, deeming it a miscarriage interfering with parliamentary autonomy.