By KEN HARRIES Esq

Since the suspension of the Senator representing Kogi Central Senatorial District, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, by the Senator Godswill Akpabio-led 10th Senate on March 6, 2025, for gross misconduct, there has been a cacophony of voices and divergent views as to the propriety, constitutionality, and legality of the action. Natasha, on her own, has been globetrotting, preaching the gospel of innocence and alleging victimization and sexual harassment.

Senator Natasha made an underwhelming appearance at the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Women's Assembly held at the United Nations headquarters in New York, twisting the story of her suspension. She told the women that her suspension was ?Political victimization, punishment for speaking against gender-based violence,? and after her allegations of sexual harassment against the Senate President, which is a lie from the pit of hell. The sexual harassment allegations were just an afterthought and, of course, another plot to discredit the person of the Senate President. She never knew that both the media and the public knew her story, and she could not hoodwink anyone. The suspended and now convicted senator never fathomed that the proceedings of the Senate are public documents and the women at the IPU could access them to confirm her allegations. It never occurred to Natasha that she was dancing naked in the marketplace at the Inter-Parliamentary Union. Surprisingly, to date, the embattled lawmaker has not filed any case or initiated any criminal complaint touching on her much-touted sexual harassment claims.

Buoyed by social media influencers and freelance lawyers, Senator Natasha approached the Federal High Court in Abuja, challenging the powers of the President of the Senate to preside over proceedings of the Senate after she had raised tantrums emboldened by her reliance on Order 10 of the Senates's standing Order. It was on the strength of the same Order 10 that she insisted she could speak from anywhere in breach of the Rules. But last week, a Federal High Court presided over by Justice Binta Nyako, finally resolved the issue, and left Natasha in the cold.

On the core issue raised in the substantive suit, the court resolved all the questions for determination against the suspended senator. Justice Binta Nyako ruled emphatically that the Nigerian Senate has the constitutional authority to discipline its members for violating its Standing Orders. She affirmed that the action of the Senate President on February 20, 2025, in reallocating Senator Natasha?s seat was lawful and within his administrative powers under Section 6 (2) of the Rules when she attempted to speak from an unallocated seat. The court further held that in exercising this power, the President of the Senate did not need to consult anyone. A senator is only permitted to address the plenary from the seat formally assigned, and Natasha acted contrary to Section 6 (2) of the Rules when she attempted to speak from an unallocated seat. Her subsequent claim that the newly allocated seat didn't afford her media visibility was as infantile as it was irrelevant.

The court unequivocally deposed that the referral of Senator Natasha by the Senate plenary to the Senate Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions Committee for disciplinary action was valid and appropriate, arising from her breach of the Senate Standing Orders.

The court also upheld the application filed by Senate President Akpabio bordering on contempt. The court found that the satirical ?apology? posted on her official Facebook page on 27th April 2025 was a clear violation of its restraining order made on 4th April 2025, which barred all parties from making public comments on the matter.

Justice Nyako ruled that the publication was contemptuous, deliberately ridiculing both the Senate President and the judicial process. Accordingly, the court imposed a N5 million fine payable to the Federal Government of Nigeria and directed Senator Natasha to publish a public apology within seven days in two national newspapers and on the same Facebook page where the contemptuous publication was made.

This conviction speaks volumes about the integrity deficit of the suspended senator, as her conduct has fallen short of what is expected of a senator of the Federal Republic. This has called into question her psychological acuity and ability to operate in a sane and lawful environment. In other words, the judgement of the court has exposed the convicted senator?s inability to conform to constituted authority or abide by simple rules and regulations. She was moved from a seat, and she refused to comply with the directive of the Senate President, whom she knew very well, had the power to preside over the Senate.

Again, Natasha was referred to the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions for unruly behaviour. She ignored the invitation to appear before the committee and defend herself, but rather chose to go to the social media court to present her case. But when she was sanctioned and suspended, she ran to the court for reprieve. Still being recalcitrant, she could not obey the simple directives of the court to cease further comments on the matter until it was determined. Natasha went to town behaving like a secondary school girl who had just been handed a new phone and proceeded to publish contemptuous material.

It is unfortunate that even being a lawyer and a lawmaker at the highest level, Senator Natasha has exuded incredible ignorance or faint understanding of the Nigerian Constitution, the principle of Separation of Powers and the Standing Orders and Rules of the Senate. Perhaps with this declaration by the court, she will take time to reflect on the provisions of sections 4, 5, 6, 60 and 101 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (As amended), as well as Section 6 (2) of the Standing Orders and Rules of the Senate.

The parliament is a sacred environment for mature minds and not a zoo or a playground for developing 'content'. According to Yuval Noah Harari, an Israeli historian, philosopher, and author of the bestselling books "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind", "Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow", and "21 Lessons for the 21st Century", ?If you take 10,000 chimpanzees and cram them together into Wembley Stadium or the House of Parliament, you will get chaos. But if you take 10,000 people who have never met before, they can cooperate and create amazing things?. The Senate is an amazing institution constituted by reform-minded, stable and focused statesmen and shall never be a theatre of the absurd.

* Ken Harries Esq is an Abuja-based development communication Strategist.

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