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Yemi Adaramodu, the chairman of the senate committee on media and public affairs, gave the warning in a statement issued on Sunday.

Adaramodu insisted that no valid court order mandates her immediate recall, noting that the senate remains committed to due process and the rule of law.

“The Senate of the federal republic of Nigeria wishes to reaffirm, for the third time, that there is no subsisting court order mandating the Senate to recall Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan before the expiration of her suspension,” the statement reads.

The clarification followed media reports quoting the embattled lawmaker as saying she would return to the senate on Tuesday, allegedly based on a judgment by Binta Nyako of the federal high court in Abuja.

Adaramodu said the senate had previously issued two public statements after the court ruling and the release of the certified true copy (CTC) of the enrolled order, making it clear that no positive or mandatory directive was issued against the upper legislative chamber regarding her recall.

“Rather, the Honourable Court gave a non-binding advisory urging the Senate to consider amending its Standing Orders and reviewing the suspension, which it opined might be excessive,” Adaramodu said.

“The court, however, explicitly held that the Senate did not breach any law or constitutional provision in imposing the disciplinary measure based on the Senator’s misconduct during plenary.”

The senate spokesperson further noted that the same court found Akpoti-Uduaghan guilty of contempt and imposed penalties, including a N5 million fine and a mandatory apology in two national newspapers and on her Facebook page, a directive that has reportedly not been complied with.

“It is therefore surprising and legally untenable that Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan, while on appeal and having filed a motion for stay against the valid and binding orders made against her, is attempting to act upon an imaginary order of recall that does not exist,” he added.

He warned that any move by the suspended lawmaker to “storm the senate next Tuesday under a false pretext” would be premature, disruptive, and a breach of legislative order”.

“The senate will, at the appropriate time, consider the advisory opinion of the court on both amending the Standing Orders of the Senate, her recall, and communicate the same thereof to Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan,” Adaramodu said.

“Until then, she is respectfully advised to stay away from the Senate chambers and allow due process to run its full course.”

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Kingibe made the allegations during an interview aired on Arise TV on Friday.

The lawmaker claimed she has documents to prove that Wike allocated lands to his sons and subsequently granted them illegal fee waivers worth millions of naira.

Kingibe also said the FCT minister has been displaying gross favouritism towards his family members in land allocation processes, randomly granting them illegal waivers.

“I have documents to show that Wike allocated land to his sons, huge tracks of land. Fine, as he says, though they are his sons, they’re entitled to land. No problem,” she said.

“The bills, I have them documented of N200 million that you need to pay, N100 million here that you need to pay.

“They wrote to him asking that he should give waiver and reduce it within 48 hours. They are going from N200 million to N2 million

“Of course this is illegal. At the very least, it’s unfair. It’s unethical at the very least.

“I wouldn’t come here without having the facts and the documentations.”

She expressed plans to take the documents to the national assembly to demand accountability from the Minister.

The senator also revealed how lands in the Bwari area council that was allocated for a government general hospital was revoked by the minister Wike, who reportedly plans to develop a market or mall on the site instead.

The post Ireti Kingibe alleges Wike reduced son’s land title fee from N200m to N2m in 48 hours first appeared on The Times of Abuja.

Speaking in an interview on Sunday, Yemi Adaramodu, the chairman of the senate committee on media and public affairs, said the red chamber had applied for the CTC of the judgement and would not take any action until the document is received and studied.

“The senate had applied for the CTC since Monday. We expect to get the document, and once we get it, we are going to comply with the content of the court order,” he said.

“But first, the senate will sit and consider the contents of the CTC, and when we look at the contents, then we shall take a position.”

He also criticised the reaction of some Nigerians to the matter, saying it stemmed from a poor understanding of how the legislature operates.

“The senate, by law, is empowered to make its rules that guide it. If we don’t have rules guiding us, we will become like barbarians,” Adaramodu said.

“If there is no rule on seating, it means that early in the morning, I can wake up and say I want to sit where the President of the Senate is sitting because he is my colleague, and that will turn the whole place into chaos and pandemonium.

“It was on the strength of the aforesaid that the court recently averred in the case between Natasha and Akpabio that there are rules and that the Senate is constitutionally empowered to make rules that will guide its activities.

“It was for this that we have Standing Orders. And enforcing the orders means that anybody who contravenes it, the aggregated whole chamber of the Senate can reprimand such a person.”

Adaramodu expressed regret that, despite the court’s clarification, some individuals continued to misrepresent the issue.

“Possibly, what they were expecting was that anybody can disobey; anybody can break any rule and that the Senate must not take any stand,” he said.

He explained that if the senate is constitutionally empowered to discipline erring members and the standing orders do not specify the duration of such sanctions, then it is within the red chamber’s discretion to determine the length of suspension.

“Whoever that is not a legislator cannot understand how the legislature works,” he added.

Adaramodu, who represents Ekiti south, clarified that the 180-day suspension imposed on Akpoti-Uduaghan includes non-parliamentary days.

“What the senate rules say is that you should observe, adhere to and fulfil the 180 parliamentary days,” he added.

The Times of Abuja reported that the senate suspended Akpoti-Uduaghan for six months following a disagreement she had with the leadership over a change in the seating arrangement.

The suspension followed a recommendation by the senate committee on ethics, code of conduct and public petitions.

The salary and security details of Akpoti-Uduaghan were withdrawn, while she was also barred from accessing the national assembly premises as part of the suspension.

She later approached the federal high court in Abuja, where Binta Nyako, the presiding judge, ordered the senate to recall her from suspension.

However, the court also found her in contempt and imposed a N5 million fine.

The post Senate awaits certified court judgment on Natasha’s return — Yemi Adaramodu first appeared on The Times of Abuja.