Akpabio sacks Senator Natasha from diaspora, NGOs committee

Godswill Akpabio, the Senate President, has officially sacked Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan as Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs).

In an announcement made at the close of Thursday’s plenary session, marking the latest development in a series of committee leadership changes involving the Kogi Central lawmaker, Akpabio appointed Senator Aniekan Bassey of Cross River State as her successor.

Akpabio, on 4 February 2025, led a reshuffle of committee leadership, removing  Natasha from Local Content and reassigning her to chair the Committee on Diaspora and NGOs after she was originally appointed as Chair of the Senate Committee on Local Content following her swearing-in as Senator in November 2023.

The February reshuffle sparked controversy because it happened soon after Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan had actively overseen oil and gas agencies. Some observers hinted that political motives may have driven her removal.

Her tenure as Chair of the Diaspora and NGOs committee was abruptly disrupted again when, on 6 March 2025, she was suspended for six months over allegations of misconduct linked to confrontations during the reshuffle process. Though the suspension temporarily halted her committee activities, she remained the official chair until Thursday’s announcement.

With Senator Bassey now at the helm of the Diaspora and NGOs Committee, the Senate has effectively closed the chapter on Akpoti-Uduaghan’s short-lived leadership of two strategic committees.