January 19, (THEWILL) – In November, shortly before Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu presented the state’s 2025 budget of N3,005,935,198,401 at the Lagos State House of Assembly in November 2024, the then Speaker, Idowu Obasa, had a vote of confidence passed on him by all the lawmakers present at the plenary.
Barely two months later, the same set of lawmakers removed Obasa and replaced him with his deputy, Mojisola Lasbat Meranda, as Speaker.
The lawmakers, THEWILL has learned, plotted Obasa’s downfall when he was away to Mecca for Umrah, the lesser Hadj, in January, 2025, but they had to grab the opportunity presented by the former Speaker’s vacation in Atlanta in the United States to boot him out of office.
As at press time, not a word was heard from him or his loyalists. What is clear is that given the sudden turn of events, the former Speaker is looking for a soft landing from the powers that be before deciding on his return from vacation in Atlanta.
So, after almost a decade of presiding over the House of Assembly, Obasa’s reign abruptly came to an end on Monday, January 13, 2025, when more than two-thirds of the 40-member legislative House removed him over alleged misconduct.
Obasa’s fall was put down to his unusual style of politics, attitude and arrogance. Apart from hinting at his governorship ambition in the most snobbish manner, his disrespect for the powers that be in the state was counted among his many sins.
For someone who had occupied the plum position of Speaker since 2015, eight years after he was elected into the House in 2007 to represent Agege Constituency 1, power had accumulated to a point of making him see himself as first- among –equals.
He is said to have snubbed Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on several occasions. Even the influential Governor’s Advisory Council, GAC, led by President Bola Tinubu’s political mentor, Prince Tajudden Olusi, which plays a major role in deciding the fate of governors of the state, was also not spared the sting of Obasa’s arrogance.
During a remark, shortly after Governor Sanwo-Olu presented the state’s 2025 budget of N3. 6tr, Obasa said, “I have made it a personal task to mobilise people on the platform of Mandate, which has been misconstrued by some political detractors as being a selfish aspiration on the ground for me to become governor of the state. There is the need, however, to correct this wrong impression. My concern is about building our party, and whatever we do is mainly for this cause.
“To the blackmailers who have embarked on a mission to distort and redefine our mission, let me state it unequivocally here that our intention is 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.”
It was an unpardonable Freudian slip. Those before him included President Bola Tinubu, who held sway as Governor of Lagos State from 1999 to 2007. Tinubu’s successor, Babatunde Fashola passed the baton of leadership to Akinwumi Ambode and the current Governor, Sanwo-Olu.
Alluding to what he considered the former Speaker’s arrogance, a chieftain of the governing All Progressives Congress, APC, Foaud Oki, disclosed recently that the on the day Sanwo-Olu came to present the state’s budget to the House of Assembly, Obasa kept the governor and his entourage waiting for five hours and offered no apology. The same treatment was given to Governor’s Advisory Council, GAC. That was despicable and dishonorable, said a Board of Trustee member of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Chief Olabode George in a television interview last Thursday, adding, “They are in the same party, with leaders in the party. Disrespecting him, they stood there for hours without even allowing him to present the budget. That was an infringement and a direct insult to the executive governor. Nobody will allow that.”
For former Legal Adviser of the APC and on-time Commissioner in the state, Muiz Banire, there is no tear for Obasa, whom he said had taken part in orchestrating the removal of a former Speaker and some principal officers of the House, even as he also faults the lawmakers who claimed to have carried out the impeachment for a man they had publicly eulogised as a great benefactor. Arguing that though he is yet to see any formal allegations for the impeachment, he is of the considered opinion that if “there were any criminal allegations leading to his removal, the ex-Speaker ought to be given a fair hearing.”
“My finding however revealed that no allegation was made in the process of removal, hence it will be sheer waste of time to pursue. This much I believe the protagonists of the cause of Mudasiru Obasa must bear in mind and advise him appropriately. To this extent, Mudasiru Obasa must joyfully return as a member to the House which is a position into which he was ordinarily and originally elected into and for which he actually bought a form and contested, anyway, he said.”
He had some strong words for the lawmakers: “over time that I have come across members of the House in public arrangements, they had largely regaled Mudasiru Obasa as their God, even, at times, against the Governor of the state. These are the same set of people that have now carried out the coup and suddenly recovered their voices. They suddenly become unmuted. As much as I respect their rights to make decisions, such rights must be exercised in a responsible manner and with all sense of conviction. It is in this regard that I would have expected the members to simply state that “we have suddenly found you unworthy to lead us”. This would have sufficed rather than searching and alluding to spurious reasons as it has seemingly become conventional of the members.”
Obasa’s deputy, Mojisola Lasbat Meranda, who was immediately elected the new Speaker, becoming the first female to take charge of the legislative body in the South-West state, has since moved to consolidate power.
First, the lawmakers, during session, also indefinitely suspended the Clerk of the Assembly, Olalekan Onafeko, and dissolved all principal positions and standing committees.
A day after her election as the new Speaker Meranda, representing Apapa Constituency I, last Tuesday, visited members of the Governor’s Advisory Council (GAC) to “brief them about what happened at the House of Assembly yesterday and to seek their blessings which we have gotten”
She met with members of GAC, the highest decision-making body of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos, alongside other members of the State Assembly at Lagos House, Marina.
On Friday, she announced new principal officers, pledged to collaborate with Governor Sanwo-Olu and outlined key priorities, including strengthening legislative independence, promoting transparency and accountability in governance, and creating an inclusive democracy where every citizen feels valued and empowered.
She said, “Our oneness is our strength. As leaders, we must lead by example, demonstrating integrity and fairness in all our dealings. We will strive to amplify the voices of our constituents, address their concerns, and protect their welfare. Together, let us work towards a brighter future for Lagos State—a future built on justice, equality, and opportunity for all. This, we will achieve together”,
The new appointments are Hon. Temitope Adedeji, representing Ifako Ijaye 1 Constituency as Majority Leader; Hon. Richard Kasumu, representing Ikeja 2 Constituency, Deputy Majority Leader; Hon. David Setonji, representing Badagry 2 Constituency, Chief Whip and Hon. Semiu Okanlawon, representing Kosofe Constituency 1, Deputy Chief Whip.
Meanwhile, state chapters of the PDP and Labour Party, LP, have called on the new Speaker to submit a petition to anti-graft agencies to investigate the fraud allegations against her predecessor.
***Written by Falade Akin
