Akpabio drops Natasha as Senate diaspora c’ttee chair, appoints Aniekan Bassey

Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, the embattled Kogi Central Senator, has been removed as Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs).

The announcement was made by Senate President Godswill Akpabio during Senate plenary on Thursday, signaling yet another change in the committee leadership structure of the 10th Senate.

Senator Aniekan Bassey, who represents Akwa Ibom North-East and is a member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) is her replacement.

“The new chairman is Distinguished Senator Aniekan Bassey, and it will take effect from today,” Akpabio announced on the Senate floor.

This marked the second time Akpoti-Uduaghan, a first-time Senator elected on the platform of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has been removed from a committee leadership position since the beginning of the current assembly.

She initially chaired the Senate Committee on Local Content but was stripped of that role in February this year. And following that, she was reassigned to lead the Diaspora and NGOs committee before her removal today.

Akpabio also hinted of a broader reorganisation of Senate committees, particularly with regard to vice chairmanships, in a bid to ensure fairer representation among Senators.

“We will make some changes to our vice chairmanship positions next week,” he stated. “Some of the Senators have two vice chairmanship positions. Every Senator should either be a chairman or a vice chairman, so we balance the situation.”

Akpoti-Uduaghan’s removal came months after she was suspended in March for alleged gross misconduct following a widely reported altercation with the Senate President over a dispute on seating arrangements during a plenary session.