Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan has been fined ₦5 million for contempt of court over a Facebook post that the court ruled violated an earlier order barring comments on her suspension case.
Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court in Abuja handed down the ruling on Friday, July 4, finding the Kogi Central lawmaker guilty of breaching a court directive not to make public remarks, on social media or elsewhere, about the ongoing legal dispute with Senate President Godswill Akpabio.
The case stemmed from a satirical post Akpoti-Uduaghan made on April 27, 2025, which she claimed was unrelated to her suspension but rather referred to separate allegations of sexual harassment against Akpabio.
Her legal team insisted the post had no connection to the matter in court.But Justice Nyako disagreed.
“After reviewing the post and the application before me instituted by the third respondent (Akpabio), I am satisfied that it was linked to the suspension matter before this court,” the judge said.
Along with the ₦5 million fine, the court ordered the senator to issue a public apology, both in two national newspapers and on her Facebook page, within seven days.
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The judgment marks another chapter in the ongoing political and legal face-off between the two senators.
Their feud reached a boiling point on March 6, 2025, when the Senate suspended Akpoti-Uduaghan following her allegations that Akpabio had sexually harassed her.
The claims came after a dispute over seating arrangements during a Senate session on February 20.
Akpabio denied the accusations, and the Senate swiftly dismissed her petition through its disciplinary committee, calling it “dead on arrival” due to procedural issues. Undeterred, the senator resubmitted the complaint the next day.
Akpoti-Uduaghan also filed a ₦100 billion defamation suit against Akpabio, and she now faces two separate court cases for alleged cybercrime and defamation, both being heard in Abuja.
The public tension between the two lawmakers goes back even further. In July 2024, Akpabio apologised for making what was described as a “nightclub comment” about the female senator, an incident that initially drew public backlash.
Now, with a contempt ruling on her record, two criminal cases pending, and her Senate suspension still unresolved, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan’s political battle with Akpabio shows no signs of easing.