Deputy spokesman of the House Representatives, Hon. Philip Agbese, has said the All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmakers in the Green Chamber donated freely to the campaign funds of Edo State governor-elect, Senator Monday Okpebholo.
According to him, no lawmaker in the Green Chamber elected on the ruling party’s platform was coerced to part with money to support Okpebholo’s governorship ambition.
Agbese stated this while speaking to journalists in reaction to a national daily’s publication that N1 million was deducted from APC lawmakers’ allowances without their consent in support of Okpebholo and his then running mate, Hon. Dennis Idahosa, a member of the APC caucus in the House.
The House supported the APC Edo governorship candidate and deputy governorship with N200 million taken from the lawmakers’ allowances.
Edo Governorship: APC Reps Fume Over N1m Salary Deductions For Okpebholo
Agbese told journalists on Monday that the decision to support Okpebholo and Idahosa was voluntarily taken at a meeting attended by APC lawmakers.
He said, “The newspaper’s report is not correct. The Senate had decided to support the then-governorship candidate, now governor-elect, Senator Monday Okpebholo. We also deemed it fit to support the ticket because the then-running mate and now deputy governor-elect, Hon Dennis Idahosa, is one of us, a member of the House of Representatives.
“Nobody was compelled to give money, contrary to the report. The Speaker was not even at the meeting. So, the claim that he unilaterally ordered deductions from lawmakers’ allowances without their knowledge is way off the mark.
“If indeed lawmakers were not happy or were forced to give, they would have protested the moment it was first reported that the APC House caucus was making a donation to the campaign funds. Why now?”
The deputy spokesman said the collective resolve of the House majority caucus to “Support the cause” led to the emergence of a chairman who headed the fundraising committee.
“We had a quorum at the meeting and the deputy speaker, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu emerged as the chairman of the Fund Raising Committee. I have gone this far to let Nigerians know that everything was done orderly,” he added.
Agbese, therefore, called on journalists to be sure of their facts before publication, adding that journalism “at all times must be separated from speculations.”
The initial report quoted unnamed APC lawmakers as complaining that their allowances were deducted N1m each to support the Edo governor-elect and his deputy without their consent.
