A Peoples Democratic Party Lagos governorship aspirant, Funso Doherty, has asked the House of Representatives to investigate the reported conferment of the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger on businessman Gilbert Chagoury, citing alleged procedural and legal irregularities surrounding the award.
In an open letter addressed to the Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abbas, and copied the Attorney–General of the Federation The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Doherty, a renowned chartered accountant, said the circumstances under which the national honour was reportedly conferred raised “serious and legitimate public questions” that require parliamentary scrutiny.
The Presidency was recently reported to have confirmed that President Bola Tinubu conferred the GCON on Chagoury on January 8, 2026, allegedly to mark his birthday.
In the letter titled ‘Open Letter – Re: Recent Reported Conferment of GCON National Honour on Mr. Gilbert Chagoury’ and dated January 24, 2026, Doherty, however, expressed concern that public knowledge of the award did not originate from any official government or presidential communication.
“Public knowledge of the conferment appears not to have come through any official Presidential or Government channel,” Doherty, who also contested the Lagos governorship seat under the platform of the African Democratic Congress in 2023, said, noting that the award only became public after a private individual issued a congratulatory message on January 19, more than a week after the stated date of conferment.
He described the mode of disclosure as unusual and troubling, particularly in view of what he said was the “widely reported close personal association” between the President and the award recipient.
The PDP chieftain also questioned whether statutory procedures under the National Honours Act were followed, stressing that the President’s powers to confer national honours, though broad, are regulated by law.
According to Doherty, the National Honours Warrant requires the President to signify his intention to appoint a person to a particular rank by notice in the Federal Gazette.
“As at date, it is not evident that any such warrant was issued or gazetted in respect of this conferment, nor has any explanation been offered for the apparent departure from established statutory procedure,” he said.
He further raised concerns over an Instrument of Conferment circulating in the public domain, which states that the award was given in Abuja on January 8, 2026.
Doherty pointed out that it was a matter of public record that the President was not in Abuja on that date, adding that the power to confer national honours was not delegable.
“This raises a further and troubling question, the very validity of the award is thereby called into question,” he added.
Calling on the House of Representatives to act, Doherty said issues relating to national honours — particularly those of the rank of Grand Commander — touch directly on Nigeria’s values, integrity and collective honour.
