Gershom Bassey

Gershom Henry Bassey (born March 18, 1962 in Lagos, Nigeria) is a Nigerian politician and businessman.[1] He is the senator representing Cross River South Senatorial District in the Nigerian Senate. He is a senator of the 8th and 9th National Assembly in Nigeria respectively.[2][3][4]

Gershom Henry Bassey
PresidentMuhammadu Buhari
Vice PresidentYemi Osinbajo
Member of the Senate of Nigeria for Cross River South
Assumed office
2019
Member of the Senate of Nigeria for Cross River South
In office
June 9, 2015 – June 9, 2019
Chairman Cross River State Water Board
In office
1999–2014
Personal details
BornMarch 18, 1962
Lagos, Nigeria
CitizenshipNigeria
CommitteesVice Chairman, Senate Committee; Petroleum Resources (Upstream), Chairman, Senate Committee; FERMA, Member, Senate Committee; Defence, Federal Character, National Planning, Local Content and Cooperation and Integration in Africa/NEPAD

Personal life and education

Gershom Bassey (born March 18, 1962) in Lagos, Nigeria, hails from Calabar South local government area of Cross River State. He is married to Chioma Gershom-Bassey with children. Bassey attended Corona School Apapa, Lagos for his primary school then moved on to Federal Government College, Sokoto where he obtained his West African School Certificate in 1977. In 1979, he received his A-Level certificate from Greylands College, Isles of Wight, United Kingdom. He also studied Engineering Production and Economics at University of Wales, Cardiff where he graduated with a BSc in 1984. In 1986, he received an MSc in Construction Management from Brunel University London.

He is a fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Civil Engineers (NICE) and has received an award of recognition from the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE). [5]

Career

Bassey started his political career when he was appointed Chairman, Cross River State Water Board in 1999.[6][7] He also served as the Chairman of the Strategic Policy Committee in Cross River State.[8][9] In 2014, Bassey declared his interest for the seat of the senate for Calabar South senatorial district.[10] In 2015, he was elected Senator for Calabar South senatorial district.[11][12][13] He was also appointed the Vice Chairman of the Senate committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream).[14]

In 2017, Ripples Nigeria made a publication of a list of "Bench Warmer" senators and Senator Bassey was number five on the list.[15][16]

In the run up to the 2019 elections during the People's Democratic Party primaries, Bassey reportedly had a confrontation with his opponent Ntufam Ekpo Okon which eventually led to a fight and postponement of the primaries by the Cross River State Senatorial Primary Election Committee. It was also reported that supporters of Ntufam Ekpo Okon attacked the motorcade of Bassey.[17] Following the attack on Bassey, Ntufam Okon was disqualified by the Cross River State Senatorial Primary Election Committee and Bassey emerged the winner.[18][19][20]

In February 2019, the election was held and Bassey emerged the winner.[21][22]

During the 8th National Assembly, he sponsored several bills that namely "Correction, Reformation and Re-integration Centre (establishment, etc) Bill, 2016" and the "Federal College of Forestry Technology and Research, Akamkpa (establishment, etc) Bill" which were passed. He sponsored a bill named "A Bill for an Act to amend the Criminal Justice (Release from Custody)(Special Provision) Act, CAP C40 LFN 2011 and for Other Related Matters", the bill progressed through to the second reading stage. Other bills he sponsored that only went through the first reading are the "Fire (Hazard, Prevention and Safeguard) Bill", the "National Boundary Commission Act (Amendment) Bill", "Flags and Coat of Arms Act (Amendment) Bill", "Federal Polytechnic Akpabuyo (Est.etc.) Bill" and the "Nigerian Research Institute of Fisheries and Aquatic, Bakassi (Est.etc) Bill".,[23][24]

References
  1. admin (2017-08-20). "Cross River: Rumbles in the Creek Ahead of 2019". THISDAYLIVE. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  2. "30 countries for Calabar Carnival, says official". P.M. News. 2016-11-20. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  3. Ajagunna, Friday (2016-10-06). "Rowdy, hostile Senate session throws out Tinubu's bill on special status for Lagos". New Mail Nigeria. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  4. Nwachukwu, John Owen (2018-08-01). "2019: Why lawmakers are defecting from APC to PDP - Senator Bassey". Daily Post Nigeria. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  5. https://crossrivertimes.com.ng/senator-gershom-bassey-the-indefatigable-march-of-a-quintessential-leader/
  6. Odunsi, Wale (2014-12-25). "Senator representing Cross River South dumps PDP after losing at primaries". Daily Post Nigeria. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  7. "Cross River: Bassey wins PDP Southern Senatorial primary". The Nation Nigeria. 2014-12-09. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  8. "Otu, Duke And Gershom Go For Senatorial Ticket". www.calitown.com. 2014-01-14. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  9. "Power shift threatens politics of 'three wise men'". The Nation Nigeria. 2012-09-16. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  10. Eribake, Akintayo (2014-08-26). "Cross River 2015: The myth around Imoke, Duke and I — Gershom Bassey". Vanguard News Nigeria. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  11. "Little-known politician beats Senator Otu in PDP senatorial primaries". The Eagle Online. 2014-12-10. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  12. daniel (2014-12-26). "Why I Resigned From PDP – Sen. Bassey Otu". INFORMATION NIGERIA. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  13. "How I was elected despite suffering defeat in my unit, ward, LGA – Senator". Premium Times Nigeria. 2015-09-09. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  14. "Power Devolution, Key To Nigeria's Economic Growth – Bassey". Leadership Newspaper. 2017-12-09. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  15. "12 Senators That Are Bench-Warmers In National Assembly [SEE LIST]". Nigerian Bulletin - Naija Trending News. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  16. "Senators who do nothing at the National Assembly". Ripples Nigeria. 2017-06-07. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  17. Gill, Nsa (2018-10-03). "Senator Bassey, Opponent Exchange Blows Over Claims Of Missing Election Materials". Independent Newspapers Nigeria. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  18. "PDP Senator calls on party to disqualify opponent from Senatorial race". The Nation Nigeria. 2018-10-06. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  19. "Ex-PDP chairman disqualified from Cross River senatorial primary over alleged violence". guardian.ng. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  20. "Sen. Gershom Bassey Attacked, Wounded By Suspected Thugs In PDP Primary". aitonline.tv. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  21. Published. "Sen. Bassey retains Cross River South Senatorial seat". Punch Newspapers. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  22. Isangedighi, Iyanam (2019-02-25). "APC candidate stops Cross River Speaker's bid for National Assembly seat". TODAY.NG. Retrieved 2019-03-31.
  23. "Gershom Bassey: Two Years Of People Driven Representative In The Senate".
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