Court convicts Senator Natasha for contempt over Facebook post

|By Adejumo Adekunle-

-Orders apology in national dailies, fines her N5 million
-Rejects Akpabio’s plea for further reliefs

The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has found the suspended senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, guilty of contempt over a satirical apology she posted on Facebook.

Justice Binta Nyako, who delivered the ruling on Friday, held that the senator violated a subsisting court order by mocking the gag directive placed on parties in the matter involving the Senate and its President, Godswill Akpabio.

In her April 7 Facebook post, Akpoti-Uduaghan had issued what she described as an apology to Senator Akpabio. However, the court held that the message ridiculed its authority and amounted to civil contempt.

As a result, the court ordered her to publish a formal apology in two national newspapers and again on her Facebook page within seven days. In addition, she was directed to pay a ₦5 million fine.

Although the contempt proceeding was initiated by Senator Akpabio, the court declined to grant him any additional relief, stating that it would not issue orders beyond what was necessary to remedy the act of contempt.

The ruling comes as part of a broader legal battle, as the court continues to hear a suit filed by Akpoti-Uduaghan to challenge the six-month suspension imposed on her by the Nigerian Senate.

The judgment in that matter is expected to shape the legal boundaries between legislative discipline and judicial oversight.