Kogi Central lawmaker, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has once again been removed from a Senate committee leadership position, a move that further intensifies the political friction surrounding her role in the 10th National Assembly.
During Thursday’s plenary, Senate President Godswill Akpabio announced the removal of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan as Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs). She has been replaced by Senator Aniekan Bassey of Akwa Ibom North-East, a member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
“The new chairman is Distinguished Senator Aniekan Bassey, and it will take effect from today,” Akpabio stated during the session.This marks the second time Akpoti-Uduaghan, a first-time senator elected under the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has been stripped of a committee leadership role.
In February, she was removed as Chair of the Senate Committee on Local Content and reassigned to the Diaspora and NGOs committee—only to now be removed again.Akpabio also hinted at an ongoing restructuring of Senate leadership roles, particularly vice chairmanships, in a bid to ensure equitable distribution among senators.
“We will make some changes to our vice chairmanship positions next week. Some Senators have two vice chairmanship positions. Every Senator should either be a chairman or a vice chairman, so we balance the situation,” he explained.
This latest removal follows Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension from the Senate in March over alleged gross misconduct after a heated exchange with the Senate President, reportedly related to seating arrangements during a plenary session.With this development, the embattled senator no longer holds any leadership position across Senate committees.
