The Senate has referred Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan to its disciplinary committee over an alleged procedural infraction on the floor of the chamber.
She is expected to face the Senate committee on Ethics, privileges and public petition chaired by Senator Neda Imasuen.
The decision followed extensive debates regarding her actions, which were deemed to have violated the standing rules of the upper legislative chamber.
The controversy began last week when Natasha discovered that her seat had been reassigned upon resumption of the session.
Refusing to comply with the new arrangement, she challenged the decision, sparking a heated exchange.
“Failure to comply with the new seating arrangement could lead to penalties, including being barred from participating in Senate discussions,” Chief Whip Tahir Monguno warned, citing sections of the Senate rule book that justified the reassignment.
He stated that such adjustments fell within the constitutional prerogative of the Senate President.
Unrelenting, Akpoti-Uduaghan protested loudly, confronting the Senate President directly, “I don’t care if I am silenced, I am not afraid. You have denied me my privilege. Mr. Senate President, ever since the nightclub incident, you have deliberately silenced my voice.
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She continued, “As a senator duly elected by my people, I choose to remain on this seat, come what may. The worst you can do is to suspend me from this sitting, and that will not stop me from contributing my quota to my constituency, the Senate, and Nigeria as a whole.”
Pointing a finger at Akpabio, she further stated: “Mr. Senate President, I have taken a lot from you. If you don’t want me to speak publicly, I will let the whole world know how you have discriminated against me, maligned me, dehumanized me.
“Your choice of words has embarrassed me. Mr. President, do what you may, I will not leave this seat.”
As she continued voicing her objections, Senate President Godswill Akpabio instructed the Sergeant-at-Arms to intervene:
“Please take her out so that we can continue with today’s activities.”
Following the altercation, Akpoti-Uduaghan appeared on Human Rights Radio on Saturday, where she reiterated her claims of being victimized in the Senate.
Reacting to the incident, Yemi Adaramodu, Senate Spokesperson, cited Orders 1B and 10 of the Senate Standing Rules, which pertain to privileges and procedural conduct within the chamber.
“The order states that, ‘Any Senator may rise at any time to speak upon a matter of privilege, suddenly arising,'” Adaramodu explained.
Describing the altercation as a “procedural infraction” rather than mere drama, he lamented the negative public commentary it had generated.
“I will note that when you are in the Senate or the Legislature and not a member, you cannot raise a point of order. You have to be a member to ask for order,” he stressed.
“The Senate is not for skit-making, not for content creation where we show off for cameras, take snapshots, TikTok, and so on,” he stated, condemning what he called Akpoti-Uduaghan’s “extreme intransigence and obduracy.”
Similarly, Senator Jimoh Ibrahim emphasized the need to uphold the integrity of the Senate, stating that any act inconsistent with the Senate Rules was “void and of no effect.”
“The Senate is an institution, and that institution must have integrity as its driving force,” he added. Ibrahim then moved that the issue be referred to the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions for further deliberation.
Opeyemi Bamidele, the Senate Leader, stressed the importance of maintaining parliamentary rules and procedures.
He said, “This is about us as an institution. Our rules will be respected because that is what binds us together,” he declared.
Bamidele emphasized that seating arrangements were “purely administrative” and not driven by personal or gender-related motives.
He cited several senior senators who had been asked to change seats without issue.
“For the record, Senator Adamu Aliero, who had been a governor for eight years and an honorable minister, was asked to move his seat and did not make an issue out of it.
“We had a reason to change the seat of Senator Aminu Tambuwal; he didn’t object. Senator Jarigbe Jarigbe, Senator Aliyu Wadada, and several others had their seats reassigned without controversy,” he stated.
He further explained that recent seating adjustments were necessary due to the movement of three senators—Senator Ifeanyi Ubah (of blessed memory), Senator Ezenwa Francis, and Senator Ned Nwoko—from the minority to the majority aisle.
Godwill Akpabipo, the Senate President, reinforced the need for order, stating that the Senate must remain stronger than when they met it.
He took time to educate senators, particularly those who joined midstream, on parliamentary procedures:
He said, “There is nothing wrong with being vibrant, but there is a lot wrong when you don’t know anything about the procedure.
“When people come from the courts or are declared senators midstream, they miss the orientation. The management of the National Assembly is hereby ordered to organize periodic orientation, particularly for senators who joined midstream (court ruling).”
Akpabio also referenced Section 66 of the Senate Rules, which empowers the presiding officer to direct a senator to discontinue a speech if it persists in irrelevance or repetition.
He further highlighted provisions that allow for a senator’s removal from the chamber for disorderly conduct.
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