A major twist unfolded at the National Assembly (NASS) on Tuesday as suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), regained access to her Senate office after a prolonged political standoff.
Security officials and the Sergeant-at-Arms of the National Assembly reopened Office 205 in the Senate Wing, which had been sealed off since her suspension earlier this year.
The development means Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan may finally resume her legislative responsibilities when plenary sessions recommence on October 7, 2025.
Sources familiar with Senate leadership deliberations disclosed that a motion would be presented by Senator Abba Moro, Minority Leader representing Benue South, requesting Akpoti-Uduaghan to apologize before her reinstatement is fully recognized.
The Senator was handed a six-month suspension in March 2025 after she confronted Senate President Godswill Akpabio over reassignment of her official seat. The Senate argued that she breached its Standing Orders, insisting that her action was a display of misconduct.
Although the Federal High Court in Abuja, presided by Justice Binta Nyako, ruled in July 2025 that the suspension was excessive and unconstitutional, the Senate leadership had resisted immediate compliance, citing the need to uphold internal parliamentary procedures.
Her lawyer, Michael Jonathan Numa, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), had issued a stern warning to the Clerk to the National Assembly (CNA), Kamorudeen Ogunlana, threatening contempt charges if his client was not allowed to return.
Ogunlana, through his spokesperson, maintained that his role was purely administrative and emphasized that only the Senate leadership had the constitutional mandate to reinstate her.
Now, with her office unsealed, the political impasse appears to be easing, suggesting that Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan may soon rejoin deliberations in the Red Chamber after months of exclusion.
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