ABUJA – The Court of Appeal in Abuja has dismissed two interlocutory applications filed by Senate President Godswill Akpabio in the ongoing legal dispute over the six-month suspension of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, who represents Kogi Central.
A three-judge panel led by Justice Hamman Barka unanimously struck out the motions after they were voluntarily withdrawn. The court also imposed a cost of ₦100,000 against Akpabio.
According to the ruling dated May 21—an official copy of which was reviewed by Vanguard on Wednesday—the motions were filed on March 3 and March 25, 2025, with reference numbers CV/395/M1/2025 and CV/395/M2/2025.
In the case, Akpabio is the Appellant, while the Respondents include Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan, the Clerk of the National Assembly, the Senate, and Senator Neda Imasuen, who chairs the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions.
Through his legal team, Akpabio sought an extension of time to appeal a decision of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which was delivered on March 10, 2025, by Justice Obiora Egwuatu in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/384/2025. He requested the Court of Appeal to grant leave to file an appeal based on grounds involving both law and fact, and also asked the court to stay proceedings at the lower court pending the resolution of the appeal.
The motions were ultimately withdrawn, reportedly because they had become irrelevant due to recent developments. As a result, the appellate court struck them out and ruled in favor of the Respondents by awarding legal costs.
Previously, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court scheduled June 27 to rule on the legitimacy of Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension. She took over the case after Justice Egwuatu recused himself following accusations of bias leveled by Akpabio.
The suspension originated from a February 20 incident during a Senate plenary session, where Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan challenged what she described as an arbitrary change to her seat. She repeatedly attempted to speak on a point of order but was overruled by Akpabio, prompting him to refer the matter to the Senate’s Ethics Committee. The committee later recommended her suspension.
In a February 28 television interview, Akpoti-Uduaghan claimed that her ordeal began after she rejected unwanted sexual advances from Akpabio.
She later filed a lawsuit at the Federal High Court, seeking a declaration that any actions taken by the Ethics Committee while her case was still in court should be deemed “null, void, and of no effect.”
