No fewer than 61 Members of the opposition political parties in the Nigeria House of Representatives, have penned their signatures, to nominate Hon. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere as the Minority Leader of the House.
Ugochinyere, a Member representing Ideato Federal Constituency of Imo State, was first elected under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2023, before joining the Action Peoples Party (APP) early this year.
His nomination is coming barely 24 hours after the Member representing Obior/ Akpor Federal Constituency of Rivers State, Hon. Kingsley Chinda resigned as Minority.
Documents obtained by journalists on Wednesday indicate that 61 of the 81 opposition members in the House endorsed Ugochinyere for the position and have submitted their nomination to the Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas, ahead of an expected announcement on the leadership of the minority caucus.
The lawmakers drawn from the African Democratic Congress (ADC), National Democratic Congress (NDC), All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), Labour Party (LP), Action People’s Party (APP), Allied Peoples Movement (APM), Social Democratic Party (SDP) and Accord Party, said their decision reflected the preference of the majority of opposition lawmakers in the chamber.
But Aljazirah authoritatively gathered that each of the Members who appended their signatures allegedly got the sum of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000.00) as initial offer, while another round of dollars would exchange hands after the nomination scales through.
It is believed that the leadership of the House would always have a buy-in, especially if it doesn’t not want the person so nominated by the Minority Caucus. The Speaker can influence or announce a preference of the leadership. I’m sure that’s why the money offered isn’t complete yet”, a Member of the minority caucus privy to the arrangement told our reporters.
Another source who pleaded anonymity said Ugochinyere is most preferred for the job, as his colleagues into the minority caucus have signed up for him, and the letter is expected to be ready on the floor of the House today.
He, however, declined comments on the alleged $50,000 bribe, though he acknowledged such rumours existed.
Meanwhile, not all members of the minority caucus are aligned with the endorsement of Ugochinyere, as internal disagreements over the process and the criteria for leadership selection continue to surface.
Speaking anonymously, a member of the caucus who opposed the endorsement hinted that the decision reflects deeper dissatisfaction within the opposition bloc over the performance of the outgoing minority leadership structure.
Some of the opposition Members who interacted with our Reporter also argued that, geographically speaking, Ugochinyere should not be thinking of aspiring for Minority Leadership, since his zone is seriously overloaded.
“The Deputy Speakder, Hon. Benjamin Kalu is from his geopolitical zone, so also is another Principal Officer, Hon. George Uzodinobi. The House can’t afford another Principal Officer from same zone. We need a spread. This is democracy”, a Member told our Reporter.
