By John Silas, Lagos
Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has denied involvement in the impeachment of the Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa.
Obasa was impeached on Monday by the lawmakers. The Deputy Speaker, Hon Mojisola Lasbat Meranda was immediately unanimously elected as the new speaker, thus emerging as the first female speaker of the House.
Sanwo-Olu’s Special Adviser on Media & Publicity, Gboyega Akosile, described Obasa’s impeachment as a strict legislative affair devoid of politics or the state government’s influence or interference.
“It is purely a legislative matter and the Assembly handled it the best way they could. It has nothing to do with the governor,” Akosile simply said, citing separation of powers in the constitution, the Executive, Legislative, and the Judiciary.
Obasa was said to have been impeached over multiple allegations including misconduct, abuse and financial misappropriation.
The Clerk of the House, Olalekan Onafeko, was also suspended indefinitely, while the Chief Whip, Mojeed Fatai, was elected the new Deputy Speaker.
In a viral video seen by our correspondent, a lawmaker, flanked by other members of the Assembly, said, “It is only death that is constant, so change is inevitable. Members of the parliament today have decided to change the leadership of the House. The Constitution makes it clear that the House has the power to regulate its proceedings.
“The members of the House felt we had had enough of the leadership of Mudashiru Obasa. We unanimously agreed that Hon. Mojisola Meranda would become the new Speaker and Hon. Fatai Adebola would be the Deputy Speaker. It was a resolution concurred by all members of the parliament. As we speak, all principal positions and standing committees of the House have been dissolved.”
Obasa’s Chief Press Secretary, Eromosele Ebhomele, did not respond to calls or text messages regarding the development at the time of filing this report.
On whether the state would be prosecuting Obasa based on the allegations of fraud, Sanwo-Olu’s aide, Akosile, said since it was the Assembly that accused the former Speaker, it was still left to the lawmakers to handle such.
Obasa was said to have recently dismissed allegations that the Assembly had spent N17bn on constructing a gate as “spurious and laughable.”
A group, Lagos State Anti-Corruption Coalition, had accused the Assembly of spending the amount on the gate and called for an investigation.
At a plenary, the former Speaker denied the allegations, describing them as politically motivated.
“It is funny. How much is the allocation of the Assembly in a whole year for anyone to claim we spent N17bn on a gate? They even alleged that we spent N200m on the recently organised 22nd Thanksgiving Service, which is untrue,” he said.
There are also insinuations that Obasa’s travail may be linked to his touted ambition to become Lagos Governor in 2027.
During the presentation of the 2025 budget to the Lagos Assembly by Governor Sanwo-Olu in November 2024, Obasa said he did not lack the experience to contest the governorship race in the state in 2027, even though he noted that he had not given serious thought about becoming the next governor “as was already being speculated.”
He said, “To the blackmailers who have embarked on the mission to distort and redefine our mission, let me state it unequivocally here, we intend to promote our party on the platform of mandate.
“Also, becoming governor is secondary; it is something that I have not given serious consideration. Nevertheless, that does not mean I am too young or lack experience to run, whereas those who have been before me are not better off.”
His comments also came amid speculations that President Bola Tinubu’s son, Seyi, might be eying the governorship position in the state, a speculation that had been criticised by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party in the state.
Meanwhile, the APC in the state dismissed speculations of political influence regarding the Speaker’s removal.
The state Publicity Secretary of the party, Seye Oladejo, told The PUNCH on Monday that the development “remains an internal affair of the legislative arm – the Lagos State House of Assembly.”
Oladejo said, “Our party respects the separation of powers. We are not known to unduly interfere in what is an internal affair of the legislature. The party has never been known to unnecessarily interfere.”
On whether the governor had a hand in Obasa’s sacking, the APC spokesperson dismissed this, saying, “All those things, including that he (Obasa) was nursing governorship ambition, those things are speculations and will remain in the realm of speculations until proven otherwise.
“There is no way people will not speculate if they are not in the clear of what transpired. If you listen to the reasons of the House, there was nowhere they mentioned the APC giving directives.”
