The Nigerian Senate has welcomed the ruling of the Court of Appeal, which affirmed the authority of the upper legislative chamber to discipline its members internally.
Recall that a three-member panel of the Appeal Court sitting in Abuja on Monday upheld the Senate’s decision to suspend the senator representing Kogi Central, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, over allegations of misconduct.
Delivering a unanimous verdict, the court held that the Senate acted within its constitutional powers in suspending Akpoti-Uduaghan. Justice Abba Mohammed, who read the judgment, stated that the senator’s parliamentary privileges and fundamental rights were not violated by the disciplinary action.
The appellate court further ruled that, under Section 66(4) of the Senate Standing Rules, the Senate is empowered to impose disciplinary measures to maintain order and decorum during its proceedings.
Reacting to the judgment, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Senator Yemi Adaramodu, said the ruling strengthens the independence of the legislative arm and validates the Senate’s authority to discipline erring members.
According to him, the judgment “unequivocally reinforces parliamentary autonomy and the doctrine of separation of powers, confirming that the Senate’s disciplinary powers are constitutionally safeguarded and subject to judicial review only where there is a clear breach of the Constitution or an existing law.”
Adaramodu added that the court also clarified that lawful disciplinary actions taken by the Senate do not amount to a violation of a member’s fundamental rights, noting that such rights cannot be exercised outside compliance with the Senate’s rules of engagement.
He concluded that lawmakers are bound by internal legislative discipline, and courts will only intervene where a clear constitutional infraction is established.