How Deliberate Exclusion from NCDC Committee Led to Altercation Between Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan and Titus Tartenger Zam

A dispute over committee membership escalated into a confrontation at the National Assembly on Monday after Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan challenged her alleged exclusion from the Senate Committee on the North Central Development Commission (NCDC).

The disagreement unfolded during a scheduled meeting of the committee, where Akpoti-Uduaghan, who represents Kogi Central, arrived expecting to participate in the proceedings. According to sources present, she discovered upon arrival that her name was not listed among members invited to attend the session.

Believing the omission may have been an administrative error, the senator reportedly sought clarification from the committee secretariat. She was informed that the committee clerk was in the office of the chairman, Senator Titus Tartenger Zam, who represents Benue North-West.

Akpoti-Uduaghan subsequently proceeded to Zam’s office accompanied by aides. Witnesses said tensions rose during the visit, leading to an exchange between aides attached to both lawmakers. Video footage of the incident, now circulating online, captures a heated argument in the chairman’s office corridor.

Speaking after the incident, Akpoti-Uduaghan described her exclusion as deliberate and questioned the procedural basis for denying her participation in a committee whose mandate directly affects states in the North Central geopolitical zone, including her constituency.

She stated that she later spoke with Zam, who, according to her, indicated that the decision was based on directives from “higher authorities” without further clarification.

The senator also alleged that members of the chairman’s staff confronted her media team during the altercation. She claimed that aides seized her cinematographer’s phone and engaged in verbal hostility, actions she described as unacceptable.

Akpoti-Uduaghan maintained that all senators are equal in status and authority under the Constitution and stressed that her protest was aimed at protecting her legislative mandate.

Efforts to obtain a response from Zam were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report.