Justice Musa Umar of the Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday dismissed the Federal Government’s request to have Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan arrested for failing to appear at the start of her defamation trial.
The government is prosecuting Akpoti-Uduaghan on behalf of Senate President Godswill Akpabio and former Kogi Governor Yahaya Bello.
During the hearing, the prosecuting counsel, David Kaswe, informed the court that the case was scheduled for arraignment but the defendant was absent. Kaswe stated that the charge had been served to the defendant’s lawyer, indicating the defendant was aware of the case. He therefore requested the court to issue a bench warrant for her arrest due to her failure to appear despite being aware of the charges.
Kaswe said, “We served the defendant through her counsel this morning, but the defendant is not present in court. This shows she is aware of the case but chose not to attend. I pray for a bench warrant to be issued for her failure to appear and take her plea.”
In response, Akpoti-Uduaghan’s lawyer, Jacob Usman (SAN), described the prosecution’s request as unusual and discourteous. He explained that upon learning of the suit, he contacted the prosecutor to inform him that his client had authorized him to receive the charge on her behalf.
Usman added, “I was served the charge at 9:15 am this morning in court, so how could the defendant know about today’s proceedings without having seen the charge? I find the application strange and ask that it be rejected. Without being properly served, the defendant cannot be expected in court.”
Justice Umar questioned the prosecutor on whether the defendant had been served the charge, to which Kaswe admitted she had not. Consequently, the judge ruled it was not possible to grant the request for a bench warrant without proper service of the charge.
He refused the application for the defendant’s arrest but approved the prosecutor’s request for substituted service through her counsel, which appeared to be made as an afterthought. The judge adjourned the case to June 30, 2025, for arraignment.
The case stems from Akpoti-Uduaghan’s alleged defamatory remarks against Akpabio and Bello, including claims of a conspiracy to assassinate her, made during a live television interview on April 3, 2025.
