Headlines
Why I Shelved My Proposed Tuesday’s Return to the Senate – Sen Natasha
The suspended lawmaker representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, reneged on her promise to resume legislative duty on Tuesday, following Friday’s judgment, which nullified her six-month sanction.
The senator also failed to tender a public apology in two major dailies and her social media account, in line with the court order.
Akpoti-Uduaghan had told her jubilant supporters in a video trending on social media that she would resume her legislative activities in the Red Chamber on Tuesday.
The senator also expressed gratitude to her constituents for standing by her, following the favourable court judgment that reaffirmed her position in the Senate.
Following her threat to attend Tuesday’s plenary, the Senate leadership stated that it would not take any official action on the matter until the review of the Certified True Copy of the court’s pronouncement.
While bracing for a possible showdown, security at the National Assembly was beefed up with traffic extending to the intersection at the Federal Secretariat in Abuja.
Although authorities insisted that the heavy retinue of operatives had nothing to do with the suspended senator, incoming vehicles were thoroughly searched with the passengers asked to explain their mission.
When it was obvious she would not turn up as promised, many speculated that the lawmaker must have been warned by the Senate to stay away.
They hinged their suspicion on a viral letter purportedly written by the legal counsel of the upper chamber.
The letter, dated July 5, 2025, claimed that Friday’s judgment by the Federal High Court did not translate to a binding order invalidating her suspension.
The correspondence purportedly advised Jubrin Okutepa to caution his client (Natasha) from returning to the Senate chamber pending the release of the enrolled order from the court.
The letter allegedly bearing Paul Daudu’s name and signature warned of potential unrest in the Senate chamber if Natasha attempted to return to the Senate without an official court order.
Daudu, the counsel for the Senate in the suit filed by Akpoti-Uduaghan, challenging her suspension debunked the claim.
He denied writing the rumoured letter to the counsel for the Kogi senator, warning her not to resume legislative duties in the Senate.
Meanwhile, in an interview with the African Independent Television on Tuesday, the lawmaker explained that her decision was guided by legal counsel and a deep respect for institutional procedures.
She stated that she would await the Certified True Copy of the court judgment before making any definitive move regarding her return to plenary sessions.
While the court described the suspension as “excessive and unconstitutional,” a counter-opinion dated July 5, reportedly authored by Senate legal counsel, Paul Daudu, SAN, claimed that the ruling lacked any enforceable directive compelling the Senate to reinstate her.
The Presidency has dismissed claims that Vice President Kashim Shettima’s recent comments were directed at the political situation in Rivers State or President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s constitutional decisions on the matter.
In a statement on Friday by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications (Office of the Vice President), Stanley Nkwocha, the Presidency described the reports as a “gross misrepresentation.”
The statement clarified that Vice President Shettima’s remarks at the public presentation of a book by former Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN), were misconstrued by some online platforms and individuals.
“These reports have distorted the Vice President’s comments in pursuit of a mischievous agenda,” it stated.
“They twisted his account of how the administration of former President Jonathan considered removing him as Borno Governor during the insurgency to falsely link it with current events in Rivers State.”
The Vice President, who spoke at the launch of OPL 245: The Inside Story of the $1.3 Billion Oil Block in Abuja on Thursday, was said to have referenced the past solely to commend Adoke’s professionalism while in office, and to reflect on Nigeria’s constitutional evolution regarding federal and state relations.
“For the avoidance of doubt, President Tinubu did not remove Governor Fubara from office. The constitutional measure implemented was a suspension, not an outright removal.
“This action was taken in response to the grave political crisis in Rivers State at the time, with the governor facing a looming impeachment and the State Assembly complex under demolition,” Nkwocha clarified.
The Presidency insisted that the action taken by President Tinubu in declaring a state of emergency and suspending the Governor was fully in line with Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which authorises such measures when there is a breakdown of public order requiring extraordinary intervention.
According to the statement, the President’s proclamation invoking Section 305(2) was subsequently ratified by an overwhelming bipartisan majority in the National Assembly, confirming the legitimacy and constitutional propriety of the decision.
“The action of President Tinubu in suspending Mr. Fubara and others from exercising the functions of office averted the governor’s outright removal. To conflate suspension with removal is misleading,” the statement further noted.
Nkwocha also stressed that Vice President Shettima’s comments were delivered extemporaneously and intended to underline the importance of public accountability and historical documentation.
He referenced the Vice President’s mention of past public servants, including Adoke and former Speaker Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, to illustrate principled leadership.
“His remarks were not in any way a criticism of President Tinubu’s actions, which the Vice President and the entire administration fully support and stand by without reservation,” the spokesman stated.
The Vice President, the statement added, remains in “loyal concert” with President Tinubu and is committed to implementing all constitutional measures necessary to safeguard democracy and uphold order across the country.
Concluding, the Presidency called on media organisations and political actors to desist from misrepresenting public remarks for sensational or partisan purposes.
“We urge media organisations and political actors to desist from the destructive practice of wrenching statements from context in order to fabricate nonexistent conflicts,” Nkwocha said.
Headlines
Akpabio Relieves Natasha of Committee Chairmanship Position, Appoints Akwa Ibom Senator As Replacement
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, has replaced suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, as the Chairman, Senate Committee on Diaspora/Non-Governmental Organisations.
In her place, Akpabio named Senator Bassey Aniekun Etim (Akwa Ibom -East).
The Senate President, who made the announcement on the floor in Abuja on Thursday, did not give any reasons.
The committee position had remained vacant since March when the Senate suspended the Kogi-Central Senatorial District lawmaker for six months for flouting the Senate’s rule on the seating arrangement and seat allocation.
The suspended lawmaker, at a point, chaired the Senate Committee on Local Content before Akpabio reassigned her to the Committee on Diaspora/NGO, shortly before she ran into trouble with the Senate over her conduct on seat allocation.
The Supreme Court has affirmed the 2024 governorship election victory of Governor Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC), dismissing the appeal filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Asuerinme Ighodalo.
In a unanimous decision by a five-member panel led by Justice Mohammed Garba, the apex court ruled that the appeal lacked merit. It upheld the earlier judgments of the Court of Appeal and the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, which had both declared Okpebholo the validly elected governor.
