Former Minister of Education and Big Back Our Girls activist, Oby Ezekwesili has written an open memo to the Nigerian Senate, Judiciary and Fellow Citizens regarding the suspension of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan of Kogi Central Senatorial District.
The memo was released on her X handle on Wednesday, 10th September in reaction to the a letter from the acting clerk of the senate, informing Senator Akpoti-Uduagha that she would not be resuming her work at the senate until the court concludes the matter.
Read the full text of Ezekwesili’s memo below.
“A Memo to the Nigerian Senate, Judiciary and Fellow Citizens:
“The Senate’s Constitutional Overreach in the Case of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan
“Democracy Dies When Laws Become Weapons and Lawmakers Become Serial Lawbreakers.
“Six months have passed since the unconstitutional suspension of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan on March 6, 2025. The Senator, representing the people of Kogi Central Senatorial District, was suspended following her allegation of sexual harassment against Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
“These six months have witnessed an unprecedented assault on constitutional principles, judicial authority, and the very foundations of our democratic institutions. Rather than transparently investigate the allegation against the Senate President, an errant political class has used this opportunity to taunt citizens on how successfully they have captured the Nigerian state, perpetrating unlimited abuse with zero accountability or fear of consequences.
“The Senate’s latest constitutional- the farcical letter dated September 4, 2025, signed by the Acting Senate Clerk and informing Senator @NatashaAkpoti that her suspension will continue indefinitely, represents nothing short of an existential threat to our constitutional democracy.
“The Senate justifies this latest illegality with the preposterous claim that ‘the matter remains sub judice, and until the judicial process is concluded, no administrative action can be taken to facilitate your resumption.’
“This reasoning is fundamentally flawed. The Senate cannot use pending litigation as justification to prolong an already unconstitutional suspension that has exceeded its own prescribed limits.
“When the Federal High Court, presided over by Justice Binta Nyako, ruled that the six-month suspension was “excessive” and violated constitutional principles, the court affirmed what legal scholars had warned: the Senate’s action exceeded reasonable legislative discipline.
“The court’s reasoning was unambiguous. Suspending a lawmaker for six months when the National Assembly sits for only 181 days annually, effectively denies constituents their right to representation for nearly an entire legislative session. This constitutes a fundamental violation of the democratic contract between elected representatives and their constituents.
“The numbers tell a stark story of constitutional overreach: 181 days are the constitutionally mandated sitting days for the National Assembly. Six months and counting is the length of suspension imposed and now being prolonged and so the proportion of legislative participation denied to Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan’s Kogi Central constituents is over 100%. Legal experts have stated that Order 67(4) of the Senate Rules permits suspension for only 14 days maximum, making the six-month suspension a violation of the Senate’s own rules.
“Worse, the Senate’s actions flagrantly disregard established judicial precedent. In 2017, the Federal High Court ruled that a six-month suspension was “illegal, unlawful, and unconstitutional.” In 2018, the court ruled that the Senate lacked power to suspend beyond 14 days, emphasizing that suspension must be proportionate and not disenfranchise constituents.
“Despite these clear legal precedents, the Senate imposed a seven-point punishment including office lockout, security withdrawal, salary suspension, and National Assembly access ban.
“While Justice Binta Nyako delivered a constitutionally grounded ruling, judicial inconsistencies have enabled the Senate’s misbehavior. When the legislative arm can ignore judicial restraints with impunity, we witness the erosion of the separation of powers that forms our constitutional democracy’s bedrock.
“The Chief Justice and National Judicial Council must address these concerning inconsistencies urgently. The fastest conclusion of the Akpoti-Uduaghan case is imperative for the courts to prove to Nigerians that they are not complicit in undermining the rule of law.”
