Abuja, Nigeria — Justice Chizoba Oji of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court has fixed December 1, 2025, for hearing of the preliminary objection filed by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan in her trial for alleged defamation against Senate President Godswill Akpabio and former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello.
Akpoti-Uduaghan was arraigned on June 19 before the court on a three-count charge bordering on harmful imputation, filed by the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice.
At the resumed sitting on Monday, prosecution counsel David Kaswe informed the court that although the prosecution had filed its response to the defendant’s preliminary objection, it had yet to serve the document on the defence team.
In response, the defence lead counsel, Ehighioge West-Idahosa (SAN), confirmed that his client’s legal team had not received any service of the prosecution’s response. He further requested a long adjournment, noting that members of the defence team would be attending this year’s International Bar Association (IBA) conference in Canada.
After listening to both parties, Justice Oji adjourned the case until December 1 for the hearing of the preliminary objection.