Senator Natasha’s Prolonged Suspension ‘Undermines Democracy,’ —Lawyer

A human rights lawyer, Oluwaseyi Faro of Deji Adeyanju & Partners, has faulted the continued refusal of the Senate to reinstate Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, despite the expiration of her six-month suspension in the first week of September 2025.

Faro warned that the development poses a grave threat to Nigeria’s democracy, setting a dangerous precedent where appeals and stays of execution could be used as cover to keep duly elected lawmakers away from their seats indefinitely.

He noted that the real danger lies in the precedent being set.

Faro said if the Senate can use appeals and stays as cover to keep an elected Senator out of her seat long after a suspension has expired, then the door is open for the same to be done to anyone else in the future.

The lawyer maintained that the honourable path before the Senate is to allow Senator Natasha to resume her duties while the Court of Appeal considers the substantive case.

According to him, such a move would demonstrate respect for both the rule of law and the constitutional principle of representation.

Citing Order 68(7) of the Senate Standing Orders, 2023 (as amended), Faro stressed that suspensions are time-bound and must end once the prescribed period lapses.

He argued that the Senate leadership’s reliance on the pending appeal and stay of enforcement order from the Court of Appeal cannot override its own rules.