NLC Warns Senate Over Continued Suspension of Natasha

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has issued a stern warning to the Godswill Akpabio-led Senate over its continued barring of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan from resuming her legislative duties, calling it a “grave assault on Nigeria’s democracy.”

In a statement, NLC President Comrade Joe Ajaero accused the Senate of deliberately undermining the constitution and the judiciary by refusing to comply with court rulings that voided the senator’s suspension. The labour centre argued that the Senate’s insistence on citing subjudice as an excuse, long after the expiration of the suspension period, reveals “a calculated attempt to silence dissent.”

The NLC stated that the action constitutes a “gross abuse of power” that disenfranchises the entire Kogi Central senatorial district.

“The decision to deprive Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan of her constitutional roles is not merely an error in judgment; it is a brazen, premeditated assault on democracy itself, a direct threat to the social contract, and a dangerous slide towards fascism masquerading as governance,” the NLC declared.

The Congress described the move as a “test-run” for silencing opposition voices ahead of the 2027 elections and warned that it sends a dangerous signal that political elites can render citizens’ votes meaningless.

Issuing a direct warning to the leadership of the National Assembly, the NLC vowed to mobilize its membership in defense of democratic principles.

“We warn the leadership of the National Assembly and their enablers: the Nigerian people, united across ethnic and religious lines, will not stand idly by while you cannibalise our democracy,” Ajaero said.

“The labour movement, as the historic defender of justice and the common good, will mobilise its immense membership and moral authority to resist this slide into autocracy. An attack on one senator today is an attack on the sovereignty of every Nigerian voter tomorrow,” the statement added.

The NLC’s intervention escalates the political standoff, framing the Senate’s refusal to seat the elected senator as a fundamental threat to the nation’s democratic foundations.