The Nigerian Senate has sacked embattled Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan from her position as Chairman of its Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations.
In Natasha’s place, the Senate announced Senator Aniekan Bassey of Akwa Ibom North-East.
Announcing the change, Senate President Godswill Akpabio on Thursday during plenary, failed to offer any official reason.
However, Akpoti-Uduaghan is currently locked in a suspension battle, with a Federal High Court declaring her suspension “excessive and unconstitutional.”
Justice Binta Nyako ordered her reinstatement and directed her to apologise to the Senate.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, who represents Kogi Central, had earlier been reassigned to the Diaspora Committee in February following her removal as Chairman of the Local Content Committee in a minor leadership reshuffle.
The Senate has maintained it has not received a certified true copy of the court judgment. A legal opinion by the Senate’s counsel, Paul Daudu (SAN), dated July 5, claimed the court’s decision lacked a binding directive compelling her reinstatement.
Speaking in a televised interview on Tuesday, Akpoti-Uduaghan stated that she was awaiting the certified copy of the judgment before officially resuming her legislative duties, citing legal advice and due process.
She also decried the Senate’s refusal to reinstate her as a violation of her electoral mandate and a blow to democratic representation, especially for Nigerian women.
“By keeping me out of the chambers, the Senate is not just silencing Kogi Central—it’s denying Nigerian women and children representation. We are only three female senators now, down from eight,” she lamented.
