By Uche Amunike
The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio has made an appeal to the appellate court to challenge the ruling of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which ordered Senator Natasha-Akpoti’s recall to the Senate, following her suspension.
Akpabio sought to overturn the judgment delivered by Justice Binta Nyako on July 4, through a notice of appeal which he filed at the Court of Appeal in Abuja on July 14, 2025.
Recall that the High Court described Natasha-Akpoti’s six-month suspension as ‘excessive’ and without legal justification.
The appeal, is marked CA/A//2025, and arises from suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/384/2025, instituted by Senator Akpoti -Uduaghan to challenge her suspension from the Nigerian Senate.
According to legal team of the Senate President, the matter concerns the internal affairs of the National Assembly and falls outside judicial purview which is provided under Section 251 after the 1999 Constitution, therefore, the High Court has no jurisdiction in the case.
Akpabio, in the 11-ground appeal, faulted the dismissal of his preliminary objection by the lower court who issued orders affecting parliamentary procedures protected by law.
He further argued that any issue related to suspension, Senate resolutions and words spoken during plenary are safeguarded under the Legislative Houses (Powers And Privileges) Act, therefore, they cannot be subjected to judicial interference.
He also claimed that the suit was premature and did not exhaust the internal dispute resolution channels of the Nigerian Senate, especially the Committee On Ethics, Privileges And Public Petitions, as prescribed in the Senate Standing Orders 2023 (as amended).
He also faulted the trial court for the alleged breach of his right to a fair hearing by raising issues not discussed by any of the parties, including the matter of whether Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension was excessive and maintained that the judge erred by making recommendations for her recall without offering an opportunity to both sides to address the issue.
He further accused the Federal High Court of procedural irregularities right by merging interlocutory reliefs sought by Akpoti-Uduaghan with her substantive claims, notwithstanding their duplication, also arguing that her suit should have been struck out for failing to comply with Section 21 of the Legislative Houses Act, which requires a three-month notice to be served on the clerk of the National Assembly before initiating the legal action.
The Senate President is also urging the appellate court, among other reliefs, to allow the appeal and set aside the judgment of the Federal High Court strike out the duplicated reliefs contained in the multiple applications of Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan and dismiss her suit for lack of jurisdiction, while rejecting what he termed the trial court’s ‘advisory opinions’ to the senate, particularly those relating to amending its rules or recalling a suspended member.
The former Akwa Ibom State Governor, Senator Godswill Akpabio also demanded that the court should invoke Section 15 of the Court Of Appeal Act, in order to resolve his preliminary objection and dismiss the entire case.
