Former Senate Minority Leader and lawmaker representing Abia South Senatorial District, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, has denied reports alleging that he threatened to disrupt plenary at the National Assembly if President Bola Tinubu fails to secure the immediate release of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.
Abaribe, in a statement issued by his media aide, Uchenna Awom, in Abuja on Friday, described the viral claim as false and deliberately crafted to sabotage ongoing efforts aimed at securing a political resolution to Kanu’s case.
The viral statement, widely circulated on social media, claimed that Abaribe staged a dramatic protest at the National Assembly, wielding a placard and blocking key access roads.
The report alleged that he declared, “Enough is enough! Nothing will function in Nigeria until Kanu is released, as required by law.”
It further attributed statements to him, saying, “The Igbo people are not fools—we have been patient long enough. If President Tinubu insists on lawlessness, then let it be total lawlessness.”
However, Abaribe swiftly dismissed the claims, stating that he was not even in Abuja at the time of the alleged incident.
Clarifying the timeline of his activities, the senator stated that he had left Abuja for an oversight function in Ikwuano Umuahia, Abia State, on Thursday and was not present at the National Assembly when the alleged protest supposedly took place.
“For the avoidance of doubt, Senator Abaribe was last seen on the Senate floor last Wednesday and travelled out of Abuja on Thursday for an oversight function organized by the Senate Committee on Niger Delta Development Commission,” he said.
He also pointed out a major flaw in the viral claim, stating, “In any case, the Senate does not sit on Fridays. Plenary sessions only hold from Tuesdays to Thursdays, making the claim of a shutdown on a Friday completely baseless.”
Naija News reports that Abaribe emphasized that Kanu’s case is currently before the courts and, as a rule, the National Assembly does not interfere in judicial proceedings.
“The report is false and a deliberate attempt to misinform the public. Matters under judicial consideration (sub judice) are not debated in the Senate,” he said.
He reiterated his long-standing support for a peaceful resolution to Kanu’s detention but insisted that the National Assembly follows due process.
“Therefore, Senator Abaribe couldn’t have embarked on such an effort knowing its futility. The truth is that he did not lead any protest or obstruct legislative proceedings,” the statement read.
The lawmaker called on Nigerians to disregard the misleading claim and refrain from spreading unverified information.
“The public is urged to disregard this fabricated report and avoid sharing false narratives,” Abaribe’s statement concluded.
His rebuttal comes two days after Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court in Abuja rescheduled Kanu’s trial for March 21.
