BREAKING: Tension in Senate as committee excludes Senator Natasha from budget defence
There was tension in the National Assemblybon Monday as the lawmaker representing Kogi Central Senatorial District, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan was prevented from participating in the ongoing budget defence hearing.
POLITICS NIGERIA gathered that the lawmaker had raised concerns over the persistent efforts hy colleagues to undermine her legislative activities within the Red Chamber.
Akpoti-Uduaghan’s protest followed her alleged omission from the attendance register of the Nigerian Senate Committee on the North Central Development Commission.
The lawmaker who had arrived at the committee meeting fully prepared to engage in proceedings ended up discovering that her name was conspicuously missing from the attendance list.
Upon noticing the omission, Akpoti-Uduaghan sought to consult the Committee Clerk to determine the reason for her exclusion.
At this point, she was informed that the Clerk was in the office of the Committee Chairman, Titus Zam.
Following this information, the lawmaker proceeded to Senator Zam’s office for further clarification.
It was during the ensuing exchange that Akpoti-Uduaghan alleged that the Chairman indicated his actions were based on instructions from higher authorities.
Although no specifics were provided, the lawmaker expressed deep concerns as she described the incident as part of a recurring pattern of marginalisation.
She also stressed that all Senators are constitutionally equal in status, authority, and mandate as she questioned the procedural and constitutional justification for excluding her from a committee whose work directly affects her region in the North Central geopolitical zone.
The lawmaker further alleged that tensions escalated when aides attached to the Committee Chairman confronted her media team.
In addition, she claimed that approximately six aides, including the Chairman’s secretary, seized her cinematographer’s phone and engaged in verbal hostility, a development she described as unacceptable.
Reaffirming her commitment to fairness and institutional integrity, Akpoti-Uduaghan insisted that her demand was rooted in respect for the electoral mandate entrusted to her by the people of Kogi Central.
“I will not have any senator here undermine my people,” Akpoti-Uduaghan said.
She pledged to continue advocating for equitable treatment whenever legislative rights are undermined.
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