Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has nullified the 90 legislative days suspension imposed on Sen. Ovie Omo-Agege (APC-Delta Central) by the Upper Chamber.
The senator had been suspended by the senate on April 13 for saying that the proposed amendment to the Electoral Act 2010 seeking the re-ordering of the general elections was targeted at President Muhammadu Buhari.
In a judgement delivered on Thursday, Justice Dimgba held that the senate perpetrated violence on the constitution with the way it suspended the lawmaker, even though it had the right to discipline its members.
The judge noted that from the wording of the report of the Senate’s Ethics and Privileges Committee which recommended Omo-Agege’s suspension, he was punished for filing a suit against the Senate after apologising to the legislative house over the allegation leveled against him.
The judge also added that the Senate’s decision to punish Omo-Agege for filing a suit against the Senate and for punishing him while his suit was pending constituted an affront on the judiciary.
He added that even if the Senate had rightly suspended the senator, it could only have suspended him for only a period of 14 days — as prescribed in the Senate rules.
The judge therefore declared Omo-Agege’s suspension as “null and void” and ordered the senate to pay all the salaries and other emoluments due to him during his purported suspension.