As she promised, the Kogi Central lawmaker, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, stormed the National Assembly, Tuesday, to resume legislative duties
But she met a brick wall at the gate as security operatives prevented her and her entourage from entering the premises.
The senator was accompanied by rights activists-Aisha Yesufu, Mama P, Randy, and a crowd of supporters. But they were denied entry by security officials.
Yesufu, and other supporters, challenged the officers stationed at the gate, requesting to sight the order allegedly issued to deny Natasha access.
“National Assembly is meant to be for everyone,” Yesufu declared. “Why are you stopping us?
“We are not abiding doesn’t mean we are cowards.”
The standoff, according to a report monitored on Channels Television, rapidly escalated as Natasha’s supporters began to chant: “Push!”
The chanting intensified as Natasha’s supporters attempted to force their way into the complex.
After all attempts failed, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan spoke to journalists, expressing deep frustration with the Senate leadership which had told her frankly not to force her way into the National Assembly.
”It’s about me, a duly elected senator walking into the chambers to resume my constitutional duties.,” Hatasha said.
“I had duly notified the Senate through two letters that I would be resuming functions today, July 22nd, 2025.”
The Kogi Central senator expressed deep concerns about the heavy police presence at the entrance to the complex, and the Senate’s alleged defiance of a court order.
“The number of armed policemen we met outside, all well-kitted with guns, charging at an unarmed female senator, was shocking,” she said.
“We have people here, attractive Nigerians, who witnessed this.
“The second thing is the fact that the Senate, under its leadership, has decided to become lawbreakers by denying my entrance into the chambers to resume my duties.”
Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan also expressed regret at what she called a deliberate attempt to misrepresent the court’s ruling in the media.
“There’s been some conversations in the media by their own team trying to twist a narrative that the judge did not order my reinstatement, and I’d like to clarify that,” she said.
“If you look at Section 318 of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution, it’s very clear that decisions of a court come in five ways: a judicial decree, a sentence, an order, a conviction, and a recommendation.
“Mine tilted towards a recommendation, which some interpret as voluntary, meaning the Senate has the right to comply or not.
“But I’d like to clarify that again.
“If you go further to Section 287, Subsection 3 of the 1999 Constitution, it clearly specifies that decisions, any of these five decisions of any court, are binding on every authority.
“So, what that means in simple terms: whether Justice Binta Nyako or the Federal High Court made an order, a sentence, a judicial decree, or a recommendation, however they want to interpret the literal words, it is still a decision of a court, and it is still binding on the National Assembly.”
Brandishing a document, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan dismissed media reports that the Senate had appealed the judgment, declaring that: “The second issue I’ve seen…around the media is that the Senate appealed the judgment.
“I’m saying it clearly… this is the appeal last week against Justice Binta Nyako’s judgment.
“It is clear that it is not the National Assembly, neither is it the Senate. It’s Senator Akpabio himself.
“The National Assembly has not appealed that judgment. The Senate has not appealed the judgment.
“The Committee on Ethics, which wrongly suspended me, has not appealed the judgment.
“As a matter of fact, Senator Akpabio joined the Clerk of the National Assembly, the entire Senate, and the Chairman Committee on Ethics as joint respondents to the case.
“That means Akpabio has taken the National Assembly, the Senate, the Clerk, and the Committee to court as well.
“That must be clarified, so there is no reason whatsoever, contrary to the publications I read yesterday, that I should not resume today because the Senate has appealed.”
As she departed the premises alongside her supporters, the senator vowed to pursue legal solutions to address what had just transpired.
