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A heated exchange has erupted among Nigerian lawmakers during a plenary session over allegations of forgery, blackmail, and attempts to influence the race for the position of Minority Leader.
Chaos erupted on the floor of the House of Representatives on Thursday when the lawmaker representing Ado/Okpokwu/Ogbadibo Federal Constituency of Benue State, Philip Agbese, accused the lawmaker representing Ideato North/Ideato South Federal Constituency of Imo State, Ikenga Ugochinyere, of using his signature without authorisation in a document purportedly nominating him for the office of Minority Leader.
The Benue lawmaker told his colleagues during plenary that he was stunned to discover a nomination document circulating online bearing his name and signature in support of Ugochinyere’s aspiration.
He said that although he had spoken with several lawmakers, including Ugochinyere, about issues affecting minority lawmakers and constituency projects, he never signed any document endorsing the Imo lawmaker.
“I feel that my legislative privilege has been breached because this amounts to forgery of my signature to be used for purposes for which it was not intended,” Agbese said.
He urged the House leadership to investigate the matter and halt what he described as sustained attempts by Ugochinyere and his associates to damage his reputation.
Agbese also refuted claims suggesting that some lawmakers received $50,000 to support a candidate in the minority leadership contest.
“My constituents have been calling me. I have not received any money from anyone, and I will not do so. This is my integrity,” he said.
The Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abbas, acknowledged the complaint and assured Agbese that the allegations would be investigated.
“We will take action on the issue you have raised in due course. However, I want to again bring to the attention of all minority members that I am inviting every minority member of this House to a closed-door meeting today by 2 p.m. so that we can discuss further,” Abbas said.
Ugochinyere, however, sought permission to respond, insisting that allegations levelled against him during plenary and on a live broadcast could not be ignored.
He denied forging Agbese’s signature, maintaining that the Benue lawmaker personally endorsed his nomination form.
According to Ugochinyere, Agbese arrived at a meeting venue and voluntarily signed the document in the presence of several lawmakers who could testify to what transpired.
His remarks immediately provoked loud protests from Agbese, who repeatedly interrupted him, shouting: “I never did that!”
Other lawmakers also joined the exchange, resulting in a rowdy session as the Speaker repeatedly called for order and decorum.
Ugochinyere insisted that his bid enjoyed widespread support among opposition lawmakers and described the forgery allegation as “a treacherous lie.” He also vowed to produce witnesses who were present when the nomination document was signed.
“I understand that at the moment, the overwhelming majority of 61 members out of 81 opposition members elected me. It may not go down well with some people, but I never expected that their desperation would get to this level,” said Ugochinyere.
The altercation in the House of Representatives came after Kingsley Chinda, who until recently served as House Minority Leader, defected to the All Progressives Congress, under whose platform he intends to contest the Rivers State governorship election in 2027.
