Sen. Titus Zam, chairman of the Senate Committee on the North Central Development Commission (NCDC), has denied that Sen. Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan (PDP‑Kogi) is a member of the committee, contradicting claims by the Kogi lawmaker that her name was omitted from the committee’s attendance register.
Zam, who represents Benue North‑West, said in a statement on Tuesday that Akpoti‑Uduaghan “was not invited to the budget defence meeting” and “couldn’t have been invited” because she is not a committee member.
The committee recently held a budget defence with management of the commission. Akpoti‑Uduaghan had complained on Monday that her name was left off the attendance list and expressed anger over the omission after the session.
Zam said two Kogi senators—Sen. Isah Jibrin, his vice‑chairman on the NCDC, and Sen. Sunday Karimi—are the panel’s members from the state. He added that several senators from the North‑Central zone are not on the committee because membership of development commission committees is mixed across geopolitical zones to reflect national character.
“For example, Sen. Pam Mwadkon from Plateau State too is not a member of NCDC, because Senators Diket Plang and Simon Lalong are members,” Zam said.
He said a brief argument followed Akpoti‑Uduaghan’s complaint and that he advised her to take the matter to the Senate Committee on Selection before she left his office.
(NAN)
