GRAVE ALLEGATIONS THAT SAW DOWNFALL OF FORMER LAGOS SPEAKER, HON. MUDASHIRU OBASA.
BY FAKEYE ADERONKE. (08053912959).
The impeachment of former Lagos State House of Assembly Speaker, Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, is no longer news. Representing Agege Constituency 2, Obasa was impeached in what can be described as a civilian coup. Thirty-two out of thirty-seven lawmakers moved the motion for his impeachment while he was in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
Obasa, who had been the Speaker since 2015, was immediately replaced by Hon. Mojisola Meranda of Apapa Constituency 1. Hon. Fatai Mojeed was elected as the new Deputy Speaker, and Mr. Abubakar Otun replaced Mr. Olalekan Onafeko as the acting House Clerk.
The lawmakers cited numerous allegations against Obasa, which led to his demotion to an ordinary floor member. They claimed they had enough of his leadership and decided to try someone else. The motion for his removal was moved by Hon. Femi Saheed of Kosofe Constituency 2, who accused Obasa of gross misconduct and poor leadership. The allegations included perpetual lateness to sessions, high-handedness, inciting members against each other, and practicing an authoritarian leadership style.
Obasa was also accused of financial misappropriation, including spending ₦17 billion on a gate at the Assembly Complex, mismanaging over ₦40 billion meant for House members, and making disrespectful remarks during a budget presentation. He allegedly spent ₦80 million on a training program for lawmakers’ wives in Dubai, allocated ₦44 billion for vehicles, and misappropriated ₦15.6 billion for office construction. Despite his denials, these allegations led to his removal and prompted the EFCC to reopen investigations.
A Lagos APC chieftain, Alhaji Fouad Oki, highlighted Obasa’s insubordination towards Governor Sanwo-Olu, recounting an incident where the governor was kept waiting for five hours during a budget presentation. Obasa’s lack of apology and courtesy further fueled the decision to impeach him.
Alhaji Fouad Oki stated further, “The President called a meeting to make sense of it all and he saw for himself the concerns raised when he came home. In the wisdom of members of Governors Advisory council( GAC), the president called a meeting where he tried to make sense out of the observations raised by elders of the party but unfortunately, the president saw by himself a recalcitrant. I think that was what broke the camel’s back “.
The impeachment of Obasa has become the begining of many battles ahead of 2027. Already, the EFCC is allegedly involved in his matter , albeit for the second time. With the discovery of almost seventy banks accounts linked to him, some of them bearing other names but connected to him via the bank verification number and his picture, another phase of his battle might open soon engaging him till the end of general election, as reported by thisday newspaper.
However, the fact remains that Hon. Obasa having spent over a decade at the house of Assembly as member and speaker of the house , has garnered experience over the years as far as grassroots politics is concerned, and that might be a threat to APC Lagos,as he is said to be nursing ambition for the gubernatorial election come 2027.
It is also gathered that the embattled former House Speaker is leaving no stone inturned in order to achieve his ambition, as he is said to leverage the strength of his loyalist spread all across local governments in Lagos State.
But with his battles with EFCC and the house of Assembly relegating him to an ordinary floor member, it remains to be seen how far he could go with his gubernatorial ambition and political journey in the State.
