The senate on Thursday announced the appointment of Aniekan Bassey as the new chairman of its committee on diaspora and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
Senate President Godswill Akpabio announced Bassey’s the appointment during plenary as a replacement for Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, the senator representing Kogi central, who is currently on suspension.
Akpoti-Uduaghan was reassigned to the diaspora and NGOs committee in February after she was removed as chair of the senate committee on local content during a minor reshuffle.
Bassey is the senator representing Akwa Ibom north-east.
In May, justice Binta Nyako of the federal high court, ordered the lawmaker’s reinstatement and directed her to tender an apology to the senate.
However, the senate has insisted it has not received a certified true copy (CTC) of the court judgement.
Akpoti-Uduaghan has yet to resume her legislative duties despite a recent court ruling that voided her suspension.
In an interview on Tuesday, Akpoti said she was awaiting the CTC of the judgement before officially returning to plenary, citing legal advice and respect for the institutional process.
