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Nigeria’s Senate president, Godswill Akpabio, ordered security to walk Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan out of the legislative house on Feb. 20, 2024, after she refused to use the seat allocated to her.
On Feb. 25, 2025, the Red Chamber referred her ‘un-parliamentary conduct’ to its Committee on Ethics, Code of Conduct and Public Petitions for investigation. Relying on Orders 24 and six, the Senate’s Chief Whip, Mohammed Monguno, claimed that it was within the senate president’s authority to reassign seats and that a senator could only speak from their designated position.
Days later, the situation reached a boiling point when Natasha appeared on national television and accused Akpabio of making sexual advances toward her during a visit to his residence in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
Although the Senate president, Akpabio, and his wife have denied Natasha’s harassment claims, this created tensions and sparked conversations across the country.
Here is what we know about the issue.
A ruckus history
This is not the first time the duo has been enmeshed in controversy. Reno Omokri, a former aide to ex-president Goodluck Jonathan, revealed details of an alleged encounter with Natasha, where she accused him of sexually assaulting her at Aso Rock.
Similarly, Joy Nunieh, the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) former acting managing director, alleged in Jul. 2020 that she slapped Akpabio when he sexually harassed her at his Abuja guest house. The senate leader was a former minister of Niger Delta affairs at the time.
Constitutional powers of the Senate
Despite acquiring an interim order directing the Senate committee not to conduct a disciplinary proceeding, the Senate suspended the Kogi Central senator for six months over alleged misconduct.
The lawmaker had previously presented a formal petition alleging sexual harassment by the Senate president, Godswill Akpabio, but the Senate rejected it. However, she brought the issue before the legislature again, after which it was referred to the ethics committee to conduct its probe and report back to the House within four weeks.
DUBAWA checks show that in section 60 of the Nigerian constitution, the Senate or the House of Representatives have the power to regulate their procedure, including summoning. This implies that both houses have discretion over internal regulations, including suspension protocols.
Similarly, we examined Section 88 (1) of the Nigerian constitution and found that it equips the country’s legislature with the power to investigate matters related to its legislative competence. Thus, the ethics committee has the power to hear such matters.
Thus, Order 97 (4) (a)(b) and (c) of the Senate Standing Rules 2015 grants the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions the jurisdiction to consider all petitions referred to it based on the above provision of the law.
Is Natasha’s suspension legal?
Controversies have raged across the country ever since Natasha was suspended. Critics have cited previous court judgments on similar suspensions, saying the National Assembly has no power to suspend any member for more than 14 days.
How true is this? We found the position of Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of the Federal High Court in Abuja in a May 2018 judgment, who relied on section 21 (2) of the Legislative Houses (Powers and Privileges) Act. The law prescribes a limit of 14 days for the suspension duration of an errant member.
Likewise, Deji Adeyanju, an Abuja-based lawyer, took to his Facebook page to express the same stance.
“Lawmakers that are ignorant of the law. [The] Senate can’t suspend a legislator for more than 14 legislative days.” He wrote.
DUBAWA also contacted Sidi Bello, a lawyer, who opined that the National Assembly lacks the constitutional backing to suspend any member. He referred to the case of Abdulmumini Jibril, a legislator representing Kiru/Bebeji federal constituency in Kano State, where the court nullified his suspension.
“I cannot rule out the fact that the National Assembly may have certain rules [governing their activities], but the Senate is turning the ethics committee into a court, and they have no right to do that,” he said.
The lawyer noted that even if Natasha’s conduct contravened the legislative house’s rules, the Senate should not be the one sanctioning her but rather an independent body.
DUBAWA contacted Yemi Adaramodu, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Media and Publicity, and his deputy, Afolabi Salisu, but received no response.
