Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan Found Guilty of Contempt by Federal High Court Over Facebook Post

Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan

ABUJA – The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has found Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central Senatorial District, guilty of contempt over a satirical apology she published on her Facebook page on April 27.

The verdict was delivered by Justice Binta Nyako during a hearing of the suit filed by Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan challenging her suspension. The court, however, first addressed a contempt application brought by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.

In the application, Akpabio argued that the senator’s social media post violated an existing court order which barred all parties from issuing press statements or making social media comments related to the ongoing case.

Counsel to Akpoti-Uduaghan defended the post, stating it was unrelated to the suspension proceedings and instead referenced a different matter involving sexual harassment allegations against Akpabio, who is the third respondent in the case. However, Justice Nyako, after reviewing the contents of the Facebook post and the arguments presented, ruled that the post was in fact connected to the suspension matter before the court.

Consequently, the court found Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan in contempt of its earlier order and directed her to publish a formal apology in two national newspapers and on her Facebook page within seven days. The judge also imposed a N5 million fine as part of the ruling.