The President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has approached the Court of Appeal to challenge the judgment of the Federal High Court which ordered the Senate to recall Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan.
Justice Binta Nyako had ruled that the six-month suspension handed to Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan by the Senate was excessive and unconstitutional. However, in a notice of appeal, Senator Akpabio and his legal team are seeking to overturn the decision, insisting that the Federal High Court lacked jurisdiction to interfere in the internal affairs of the National Assembly.
Newsflownaija gathered that Akpabio is arguing that the entire issue arose from comments and resolutions made during Senate plenary sessions, which by law are protected from judicial scrutiny. He maintained that such parliamentary proceedings fall exclusively within the purview of the legislature and are not subject to external review by the courts.
As at the time of filing this report, a date is yet to be fixed for the hearing at the Court of Appeal.
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