By Ayomide Otitoju
The Federal High Court in Abuja has fined Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan ₦5 million for contempt of court over a satirical social media post targeting Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
Justice Binta Nyako handed down the ruling on Friday while presiding over a suit filed by Akpoti-Uduaghan challenging her March 2025 suspension from the Senate. The judgment began with a ruling on a contempt application filed by Akpabio, who argued that the senator’s April 27 Facebook post violated a court order barring all parties from public commentary on the case.
Although Akpoti-Uduaghan’s counsel argued that the post referred to unrelated sexual harassment allegations against Akpabio, Justice Nyako concluded that the post was linked to the case before her. She ruled that the senator was in contempt and ordered her to publish a formal apology in two national newspapers and on her Facebook page within seven days.
The Kogi Central lawmaker is also facing two additional court cases in Abuja related to cybercrime and defamation.
Tensions between the two lawmakers boiled over on March 6, 2025, when the Senate suspended Akpoti-Uduaghan after she accused Akpabio of sexual harassment and abuse of office. The dispute stemmed from a heated disagreement over seating arrangements on February 20.
Akpoti-Uduaghan responded to her suspension by filing a ₦100 billion defamation lawsuit against Akpabio. Meanwhile, the Senate’s disciplinary committee dismissed her harassment allegations, citing procedural deficiencies. The senator re-submitted the petition the following day.
This isn’t the first public clash between the two. In July 2024, Akpabio issued an apology to Akpoti-Uduaghan for a derogatory comment he made about her in relation to a nightclub incident.
