Lagos: Lawmakers Jittery As  Obasa Returns As Speaker

By Akinwale Kasali

The fate of most of the Lawmakers in the Lagos State House of Assembly hangs in the balance with the return of Mudashiru Obasa as the Speaker.

Six weeks after his Impeachment as the Speaker of the House and the crowning of his Deputy, Mojisola Meranda as Speaker, after an overwhelming majority of the Lawmakers pledged allegiance and support to her, singing: “no room for Obasa to return as Speaker”, Obasa defied them and took back his seat Thursday morning.

During the reconciliation meeting held with the Governance Advisory Council, GAC, and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in Abuja weeks back, the Lawmakers unanimously said they were not ready to give Obasa any soft landing by returning him as Speaker. They said they stood with 44-year old Meranda.

Obasa’s impeachment  paved way for Hon. Temitope Adedeji to emerge as the Majority Leader of the House.

Days ago, there were speculations that either Hon. David Setonji or Hon. Wale Rauf would emerge as Speaker, following plans for Meranda to resign her position and return to her previous Office as Deputy Speaker due to “Senatorial Representation In State Leadership”.

However, in a twist of events, Obasa’s return as Speaker, following the return of his Security details and withdrawal of Meranda’s Security details changed the dynamics. It has put the Lawmakers who masterminded his impeachment in a fix.

It would be recalled that some of the Lawmakers had stated during the negotiations for Obasa’s return  that it will spell doom for their re-election and also their future in the House.

With his return to the saddle as Speaker, there are fears among the Lawmakers, as their future relationship with him remains uncertain.