Nigeria, June 4 -- A fresh controversy over the leadership of the opposition caucus in the House of Representatives erupted on Thursday after deputy spokesperson of the House Philip Agbese denied endorsing Ikenga Ugochinyere for the position of minority leader and accused an unnamed MP of forging his signature.

The dispute, which played out during plenary, triggered heated exchanges among lawmakers and briefly disrupted proceedings as MPs argued over competing claims surrounding the ongoing contest for the minority leadership position.

The development comes barely 24 hours after documents obtained by journalists indicated that 61 of the 81 opposition MPs in the House had endorsed Mr Ugochinyere for the position of minority leader and su...