LAHA: Obasa Wins As Security Details  Restored,  Speaker Meranda’s Withdrawn

By Adesina Soyooye 

Lagos House of Assembly Speaker, Mojisola Meranda is set to make another history.

On January 13, Meranda who was the Deputy Speaker of unarguably the most active, the most liquid, financially, the most independent, and the most metropolitan in Nigeria, made history when she was elected by her colleagues as the first Female Speaker of the Lagos House of Assembly since inception.

But as this report is being written, she is set to make another history by becoming the Speaker who held the position the briefest period, and the most humiliated.

She was elected Speaker after Mudashiru Obasa, the longest serving Speaker of the House in Nigeria, whose Deputy she was, was impeached in his absence. Members, unanimously, almost, elected Meranda as the Speaker. But since then, she has hardly sat properly on the seat.

On return, Obasa rejected his impeachment, declared himself still Speaker, refused to go to the House, and instead proceeded to the Court to challenge his impeachment which he declared illegal. 

In the past two weeks, there have been interventions by President Bola Tinubu, who it does seem has sympathy for Obasa, and who, allegedly, was not told, in advance that Obasa would be impeached, and the powerful Lagos Governance Advisory Council as well as the Lagos APC Chapter. The GAC is divided.

However, Thursday morning, it emerged that Obasa may be headed back as Speaker. According to reports, confirmed by an Aide to Meranda, all the Security details of his Principal have been withdrawn, leaving her and the Assembly vulnerable.

He said: In the early hours of Thursday, we woke up to the startling news that all the Security Details attached to Madam Speaker, Mojisola Meranda, have been withdrawn. This includes the Police and the DSS, leaving her exposed amidst the Speakership crisis.”

Conversely, all the Security Details of impeached Speaker Obasa have been restored, giving a strong impression that he is most likely headed to his powerful office as Speaker.

Meranda’s Aide appealed to the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, as the Chief Security Officer of the State to intervene. But Sanwo-Olu’s hands seem tied. If President Tinubu is behind Obasa, there is nothing much he can do.

The worrying aspect is how Sanwo-Olu would work with Obasa, who, allegedly, has no respect for him or his office. He had welcomed the Speakership of Meranda. 

There is also the big problem of how the majority  of the House Members who impeached Obasa for arrogance, high-handedness,  and alleged corruption, denied strongly by Obasa, will work with him. They had, two times, passed a vote of implicit confidence on Meranda.

Two days ago when the Clerk of the House, Olalekan Onafeko, suspended by the Assembly  on the day Obasa was impeached, dared go to office to resume, he was booed out of the premises.

*More details follow later.