The High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), sitting in Maitama, has granted bail to the suspended senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, in the sum of ₦50 million.
Grassroots Parrot reports that Justice Chizoba Orji, who delivered the ruling on Thursday, dismissed the federal government’s application to remand the senator in prison custody pending the conclusion of her trial.
The judge held that the prosecution failed to provide sufficient grounds to deny bail, adding that the court was satisfied with the defendant’s willingness to stand trial.
As part of the bail conditions, the court ordered Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan to produce one surety—a person of integrity who owns a landed property within Abuja.
The court anchored its ruling on Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and Sections 163 and 165 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015. The case was adjourned until September 23, 2025, for trial.
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Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan is facing a three-count charge marked CR/297/25 filed by the Federal Government, accusing her of making false and defamatory claims during a live appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today on April 3.
She allegedly accused the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, of plotting to assassinate her—claims the government argues were made with intent to harm their reputations, contrary to Sections 391 and 392 of the Penal Code.
The prosecution listed Akpabio and Bello as nominal complainants, alongside four other witnesses, including two investigating police officers—Maya Iliya and Abdulhafiz Garba—Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong, and Sandra Duru.
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The charges followed a letter Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan addressed to the Attorney-General of the Federation, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), alleging police bias in the investigation of her earlier petitions.
This development comes amid her legal challenge against a six-month suspension imposed by the Senate following a heated confrontation with Senate President Akpabio on the floor of the Red Chamber on February 20. A ruling on the legality of that suspension is expected on June 27.
Akpoti-Uduaghan has also alleged that her ordeal in the Senate stems from rejecting unwanted advances from Senator Akpabio—a claim she made in a February 28 television interview.
The embattled senator is seeking the court’s declaration that her suspension and all actions by the Senate Committee on Ethics during the pendency of her case are null and void.