Chief Afolabi Fashanu (SAN), the counsel for the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa, for the umpteenth time on Sunday, dismissed speculations that his principal would be dropping the suit against erstwhile Speaker Mojisola Meranda, and the Assembly members.

Fashanu, in a telephone interview with The TheNigerian, said his team was awaiting the court judgement on the matter and there was no going back.

This is despite President Bola Tinubu’s recent intervention in resolving the leadership crisis at the Lagos Assembly with sources maintaining that part of the settlement was for Obasa to withdraw the suit against his colleagues.

On March 17, 2025, Justice Yetunde Pinheiro of the Lagos State High Court, where the case is being heard, reserved judgment in the suit filed by Obasa, who is challenging the legality of the January 13, 2025 proceedings that led to his initial removal.

The judge heard several preliminary objections by various counsel representing the defendants and said the date to deliver the judgment and rulings would be communicated to parties in due course.

“We are just waiting for the judgment. We don’t know when yet, the court said they will communicate it to us,” Fashanu said on Sunday.

When asked if Obasa was still considering withdrawing the suit, he said, “We have concluded. You’re twisting the hand of the clock back. We have concluded arguments; that one does not arise again. He’s not withdrawing, we have concluded.”

A former chairman of the All Progressives Congress in Lagos State, and member of the Governance Advisory Council, Otunba Henry Ajomale, said on Saturday that he believed Obasa would withdraw the suit soon given Tinubu’s intervention.

An online medium reported that the chieftain said this in a chat with journalists on the sideline of an award to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu in Lagos on Saturday.

“Very soon, (at) the next sitting, you will see the difference,” he said.

“Somebody is aggrieved and he went to court. It is his right to go to court. And it is now our own duty since Mr. President intervened and rightly too because this is his own making.

“He will not allow it to create a bitter problem. And that is why he has to intervene. And everything is back to normal now.

“Now that he (Obasa) has been returned, I believe that the case will be withdrawn from court. In no time. Perhaps at the next sitting, you will see the difference,” Otunba Ajomale said.

The TheNigerian reports that Obasa adjourned the plenary indefinitely on March 3, 2025 when he was reelected as Speaker following the resignation of Meranda from the position.

The development followed a 49-day reign of Meranda as the first female Speaker of the Lagos Assembly, a period that was, however, marred by a heated leadership crisis as Obasa, who was earlier removed on January 13, kept fighting his way back to the Speaker’s Office.

The crisis was later resolved by the national leadership of the APC, which prevailed over the lawmakers to allow Obasa to return.

All 40 lawmakers of the House later met with President Tinubu in Abuja on March 12, 2025, where the President further settled the grievances among the lawmakers, particularly between Obasa and Meranda.

The House has not called a sitting since March 3 in what looks like a pause in the functions of the legislative arm of the state.

When asked last Tuesday when the House would be reconvening, the Clerk, Ottun Babatunde, told our correspondent that the Assembly would likely resume after the Sallah break.

He said, “We adjourned sine die (indefinitely), but (we will) likely (resume) after Sallah by God’s grace.”

When quizzed further on what would be the focus of the House upon resumption, the clerk simply said, “We will resume our work. Our normal duty is what we are (going to be) doing.”

He maintained that the House committees were still carrying out their activities despite the recess. “In fact, the committee activities are ongoing. It was only plenary that we suspended, and we went on recess,” Ottun added.

Around the time, a source close to Obasa also revealed that the Speaker was not in the state as he had gone to perform the holy pilgrimage in Mecca.

The 49-day reign of Mojisola Meranda as Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly ended on Monday, when the lawmakers re-elected Mudashiru Obasa to lead them.

The move is not unconnected to the resolutions of the mediating panel led by Chief Bisi Akande and Chief Olusegun Osoba, former governors of Osun and Ogun states, who intervened in the leadership crisis that rocked the assembly for almost 50 days.

Over a week ago, the heavyweights in the All Progressives Congress, including the aforementioned former governors, were drafted by President Bola Tinubu to find a lasting solution to the Assembly leadership crisis which began when Obasa was removed by over 30 lawmakers on January 13, 2025.

Obasa was away in the United States when he was removed and replaced with his deputy, Meranda, a move that Obasa vehemently rejected, and even approached the court to challenge.

At the plenary on Monday, other principal officers elected under Meranda also resigned from their positions, including Deputy Speaker, Mojeed Fatai, and Chief Whip, Okanlawon Sani.

Before the development, Obasa, Meranda and all the lawmakers had met with the leadership of the party in the state, led by the state Chairman, Cornelius Ojelabi.

The state Attorney General, Lawal Pedro (SAN), was also at the meeting held outside the assembly chamber, before the plenary where Meranda officially resigned.

In her resignation speech, Meranda stated that her decision was made in the interest of democracy and to prevent further crises within the Assembly.

She emphasised that leadership required selfless sacrifice and that stepping down was necessary to maintain stability.

“I wish to let every one of you know that I have made a personal sacrifice towards resolving the leadership crisis rocking the Lagos State House of Assembly.

“I recognise the role my family has played and continues to play in entrenching democracy, good governance, and the betterment of our people.

“I will never depart from the well-established path of honour, dignity, integrity, and service as personified by my late father,” she said.

The first female speaker in the history of the Assembly added, “I took this decision carefully and with firm consideration.

“On one hand, I accepted the position of Speaker on January 13, 2025, and on the other hand, I resigned the position as it is threatening the democracy of this House.

“I am not a quitter; however, I took this bold decision in order to save this legislative institution from further unnecessary conflict and embarrassment.

“Accordingly, I have agreed to yet again make a personal sacrifice by stepping down as the Speaker of this great Assembly.”

According to Meranda, the party is supreme.

“I sincerely thank you for your understanding and support, just as we know that party decisions are supreme,” she said.

Obasa, who took a fresh oath of office as the Speaker, pledged to Lagos residents that the assembly would continue to make laws for the progress of the state.

He appreciated the intervention of Akande and Osoba in resolving the crisis.

He said, “We want to assure Lagosians that we have resolved and determined to serve their interest and protect their interest always.

“Our major responsibility is to represent them and that’s what we have been doing.

“What is happening here today shows that the Lagos State House of Assembly is capable and is a House of integrity. It is a house that has an internal mechanism to resolve issues in the interest of the institution and our party.

“Today is not the day for speech making but to celebrate my colleagues and thank them for all they have been doing. I am sure we will continue to work together in peace, love and harmony.”

Obasa thereafter adjourned the plenary indefinitely.

The TheNigerian earlier reported that part of the resolutions of the Akande-led panel who met with members of the Governance Advisory Council, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and the lawmakers at Marina, was for Obasa to also resign after being re-elected as Speaker.

A GAC member, Chief Muraina Taiwo, who was at the meeting and spoke with The TheNigerian in February, said that “The APC leaders, including Chief Bisi Akande and Chief Olusegun Osoba, came to mediate.

“They will go back to Abuja to brief our leader (Tinubu) how they feel about everything. They are suggesting to Speaker Obasa that he should step down and the other woman (Meranda) to also step down and they will bring in another new person.

“They are thinking of submitting a few names but all will land at the table of the leader.”

Another top source in the APC in the state had also said, “Meranda will step down and Obasa will also step down. They will now pick someone else from Lagos West.

“Lagos West is the largest senatorial zone in Lagos. The lawmakers seem to have agreed, otherwise, there won’t be peace.

“Part of the understanding is that the case the man (Obasa) took to court, he will withdraw it as well.”

However, it is not certain if the resolution still subsists, or if Obasa would resign anytime soon.

The GAC member, Chief Muraina, when asked about it in a telephone interview on Monday, said it was left for Obasa to resign or not, adding that the party was, however, in support of his return to the House as Speaker.

Chief Muraina said, “The whole party is in support. You can see the resignation address of the former Speaker. She did it wholeheartedly and she abided by the decision of the party.”

When asked if Obasa would be resigning, he said, “That is his own personal decision, If he chooses to resign tomorrow, fine, if he insists on staying on the seat, it’s left to him.

“Resignation is not by force unless a directive comes from the party’s leadership. For now, I don’t see him resigning. The party has not decided that he should resign.”

Another GAC member, Anthony Adefuye, said the party had allowed peace to reign in the House.

He said the resolution of the leadership crisis was due to the intervention of many people.

“Many of us intervened. We are happy and glad that the whole thing has been settled. Let us allow peace.

“God has given us a President, let us also behave like people who have a President, and let the town be peaceful,” the GAC member said.

The APC Chairman in Lagos, Cornelius Ojelabi, commenting on the development in an interview with our correspondent, expressed satisfaction with the resolution of the House leadership crisis.

When asked about the resolution of the party that Obasa was to resign after Meranda, Cornelius said, “That (the current situation) is where the party resolved it for now. That’s where we resolved it.”

When quizzed further if Obasa would no longer be resigning, he said, “No, that’s where we resolved it. We just want peace in the House generally.

“The kind of harmonious relationship that existed among them before in the House, we want to try as much as possible to bring it back.”

In a statement released by the APC, signed by its spokesperson in the state, Seye Oladejo, the party congratulated Lagosians and members of the Lagos State House of Assembly and general members of the APC for finding an amicable solution to the rift within the House of Assembly.

Oladejo said the crux of the disagreement which had been mainly to draw the attention of the public and the party to intractable internal issues “stretched the well-tested and trusted internal conflict resolution mechanism of the party.”

He said, “As a truly democratic party, we refrained from needless interference in the affairs of the legislature whose independence we hold in high esteem.

“However, the House deferred to the party when the conflict festered and defied all suggestions for settlement.

“We want to put it on record that the members of the House officially briefed the party about the untoward development and requested wise counsel from the party just a few days ago.”

He said the party met with all the members and proffered practical solutions which were sacrificial, stabilising and in the best interest of the state.

“You may wish to note that our role remained basically advisory and could only be binding if upheld in the hallowed chamber of the House of Assembly,” he added.

Obasa suit pending

Obasa’s counsel, Chief Afolabi Fashanu (SAN), said the Lagos Speaker will be deciding on the withdrawal of the suit against the Assembly and Meranda.

Obasa had, earlier in February, dragged Meranda and the Assembly to court to challenge his removal by the lawmakers on January 13, 2025.

Obasa, in suit number ID/9047GCM/2025, filed before Justice Yetunde Pinheiro of the Lagos State High Court, Ikeja, is contesting the constitutionality of the sitting and proceedings during a recess, which occurred without him reconvening the House or delegating the authority to someone else.

On Friday, Justice Pinheiro fixed March 7, 2025, for the hearing of all pending applications on the matter.

When asked in a telephone interview on Monday if Obasa would discontinue the suit, following his official return as Speaker, his lawyer said, “Withdrawing the case still has to be at his instance.”

He added, “Just as you saw what transpired with respect to him coming back (to the House), he still has to formally brief us on what he wants us to do in terms of withdrawing the case. So, as of now, he has not gotten back to us.

“So maybe by tomorrow (Tuesday), we will have a meeting with him on how to proceed. Because I do not know the terms of his return, whether it was conditioned upon fulfilment of certain things or not.”

Lawmakers eulogise Meranda

Meanwhile, lawmakers have praised Meranda for heeding the directives of the APC and “letting go.”

They saluted her 49 days of leadership and wished her well in her future endeavours.

“The entire chamber is in tears. You have restored the spirit of friendship, comradeship, and loyalty to this House.

“We now have a renewed sense of belonging and an understanding that the party is supreme,” said lawmaker Temitope Adewale.

He added, “To my dear colleagues, this is not the end—this is Asiwaju’s House. Let’s not lose hope; things will change for the better.”

Another lawmaker, Tobun Abiodun, said, “You did very well, but as we know, we are politicians, and in politics, our party is supreme.

“We are proud party members, and our party has spoken. I thank the Deputy Speaker and everyone else affected. We are here to obey the party, and we are not ashamed of it. Madam Speaker, I pray for you—may God Almighty be with you.”

He added, “You have listened to the party and are willing to let go.”

The lawmaker representing Surulere, Desmond Elliot, could not control his emotion, as he asked not to speak, and almost burst into tears.

All other members commended Meranda for her unique leadership style, describing her as a dedicated and visionary lawmaker with a track record of selfless service and commitment to legislative excellence.

They expressed confidence in her ability to further strengthen the Assembly’s legislative agenda in her new role as Deputy Speaker.

Assembly security tightened

The Assembly complex was under heavy security surveillance before and after the plenary.

Operatives of the state police command, Lagos Neighbourhood Security Corps, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps and the Department of State Services cordoned off the Assembly premises.

Earlier in the day, there was strict screening at the assembly gate with journalists denied entry until around 1 pm.

The reinstated Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa, on Tuesday, held a meeting with his fellow lawmakers.

The meeting held at the Assembly complex  in Alausa, Ikeja was aimed at reconciling with his aggrieved colleagues following the leadership crisis which came to an end on Monday when the lawmakers reelected Obasa as Speaker.

The event followed the resignation of Mojisola Meranda as Speaker at Monday plenary after which she was also re-elected as Deputy Speaker, a position she held before she was made Speaker on January 13, 2025 after Obasa’s removal.

Meranda led the House as Speaker for 49 days.

Obasa’s re-election by the 40-member legislative assembly followed a series of interventions by the leadership of the All Progressives Congress led by former governors Bisi Akande and Aremo Olusegun Osoba.

The Tuesday meeting also happened amid speculations that Obasa was expected to resign.

But a source in his camp  told The TheNigerian on Tuesday that Obasa would not be resigning.

The Chairman of the APC in Lagos, Cornelius Ojelabi, also shrugged off the speculation when asked about it Monday.

Some lawmakers, who attended the meeting, and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the agenda at the short meeting was not necessarily for reconciliation.

A lawmaker said, “First, one of the issues we raised as a reason for his removal happened again. A meeting scheduled for 1pm did not hold until 2.30pm. We were all kept waiting and when he arrived, there was no apology for the late commencement of the meeting.

“He went straight to the agenda after he passively acknowledged that we were still bitter with the way we were forced to bring him back and none of us contributed at the meeting.”

Another lawmaker said the meeting  “was to update us on the case brought against us by the suspended Clerk, Olalekan Onafeko.

“The matter comes up on Thursday. Ordinarily, it is a civil matter, so we were concerned that he had to involve the Department of State Services, which further led to the invitation and arrest of some of our colleagues.

“Aside these, nothing else happened. The meeting was short-lived.

“I want you to know that his return was not a selfless decision by us. It was done simply because we respect leaders like Baba Bisi Akande and Aremo Olusegun Osoba. In our hearts and souls, we do not want him up till this moment.”

The lawmaker said there was still anger within the House, adding that it would be difficult for the state legislature to remain the same.

A source in Obasa camp said Obasa had been meeting with the lawmakers.

“You know they also met  on Monday. Before then, they have also been meeting, so it’s been ongoing. It’s just to reconcile, so they can work together,” the source said.

He added that Obasa is pushing for the return of Olalekan Onafeko as the Clerk of the House.

The source said, “Obasa is pushing for Onafeko to return but the lawmakers are adamant.  Although some of them are already shifting ground and considering. Let’s see how it goes.”

He explained that it would not be politically correct for a pro-Meranda clerk to still continue as Obasa’s clerk.

Onafeko was suspended on January 13 by the lawmakers, the day the Obasa was removed. He was replaced with Ottun Babatunde.

Onafeko has dragged Babatunde and the Assembly to the National Industrial Court to seek redress.

However, Ottun acted as Clerk at the Monday plenary where Obasa was reelected.

In a telephone conversation with The TheNigerian on Tuesday, Onafeko said he was still standing by the court decision and added that he was also open to political resolution and the decision of the House.

He said, “Sometimes, you mange the situation. That doesn’t mean you don’t know what you’re doing, but for the sake of peace and the integrity of the institution itself, and I want to defer to the members of the House. I know that they will do the right thing. So, let’s take it one step at a time.

“It’s not something that you can only sort out by the law. The political and human aspects will also be looked into. The most important thing is what is good for the institution and and the state itself,” he said.

He noted that the Clerk’s Office is under renovation, and “nobody is there for now.”

Obasa’s lawyer, Chief Afolabi Fashanu (SAN), could not be reached on Tuesday to confirm if his client would also be dropping the suit against the Assembly.

He however said on Monday that he had yet to be briefed on that.

Mudashiru Obasa has been reinstated as the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly.

He was sworn in on Monday after Mojisola Meranda resigned as Speaker.

This followed a meeting between Meranda, Obasa, and lawmakers outside the Assembly chambers.

Meranda resigned on Monday as Speaker after 49 days in office.

In January, lawmakers impeached Obasa as Speaker following allegations of misappropriation, and Meranda was sworn in.

In February, Obasa returned to the Assembly and declared himself Speaker, stressing that he was never removed.

However, Monday’s closed-door meeting had the chairman of the state All Progressives Congress, APC, Cornelius Ojelabi, and the Attorney General of Lagos State in attendance.

Obasa’s reinstatement followed a meeting held on Sunday night with stakeholders and leaders of the party, including Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.

Mudashiru Obasa has been returned as the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly.

Obasa was reinstated following the resignation of Mojisola Meranda, who stepped down from the role with immediate effect.

He was returned as the speaker during Monday’s plenary session.

In January, the lawmakers impeached Obasa over multiple allegations, including poor leadership style, high-handedness, frequent lateness to plenary sessions, abuse of office, and intimidation of colleagues.

The impeachment was supported by over 90 per cent of the lawmakers.

Reacting to his impeachment, Obasa rejected the process, insisting that the lawmakers did not follow the constitutional procedure to remove him as speaker.

He also denied the allegations of corruption brought against him by the lawmakers during his removal, describing the alleged financial misappropriations as “impossible.”

“My status in the House? I believe strongly I am still the speaker until the right thing has been done. If you want to remove me, remove me the proper way and I will not contest it,” Obasa had said while denying the corruption allegations against him.

In a bid to resolve the leadership crisis, notable All Progressives Congress leaders, including former governors of Osun, Ogun, and Lagos states, Bisi Akande, Segun Osoba, and Akinwunmi Ambode, respectively, intervened on the directive of President Bola Tinubu.

After a reconciliation meeting with all lawmakers on Monday, Meranda tendered her resignation alongside other top principal executives.

“This is a notice of resignation as Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly,” Meranda announced during the plenary.

Subsequently, Obasa was returned as the Speaker of the House.

Speaking during the plenary session, he thanked the lawmaker while calling for unity and love.

He said, “We want to assure Lagosians that we have resolved and determined to serve their interest and protect their interest always.

“Our major responsibility is to represent them and; that’s what we have been doing.

“What is happening here today shows that the Lagos State House of Assembly is capable and is a House of integrity. It is a house that has an internal mechanism to resolve issues in the interest of the institution and our party.

“Today is not the day for speech making but to celebrate my colleagues and thank them for all they have been doing. I am sure we will continue to work together in peace, love and harmony.”

Members of the Lagos State House of Assembly have rejected Mudashiru Obasa as the Speaker of the parliament.

Speaking with journalists at the assembly complex on Thursday, the lawmakers refuted Obasa’s claim that he remains the speaker.

The 36 lawmakers reaffirmed their support for the current speaker, Mojisola Meranda, insisting that she is the speaker of the assembly.

The Chairman, House Committee on Information, Security and Strategy, Steven Ogundipe, stated that the lawmakers remained committed to ensuring that Obasa’s removal stands.

Ogundipe also called on the All Progressives Congress leadership in Lagos to intervene in the leadership crisis.

He said, “We were approached by our leaders that we should remain calm and take things easy. But we are surprised to see what is happening here today.

“We won’t take laws into our hands, just as we told the staff not to take laws into our hands. But we all belong to different constituencies, and we have our mandate. Whatever has to happen, the leadership should speak with us and not this charade we are seeing.

“We are not happy; we have been law-abiding. We have not gone out of our way against the state. We also want to be respected and to be given our dignity. To be shown that we are elected. I’m appealing to the leadership of our party that we cannot continue this way.”

Meanwhile, two lawmakers—Ayinde Akinsanya (Mushin Constituency I) and Noheem Adams (Mushin Constituency II)—were spotted accompanying Obasa into the Assembly complex.

TheNigerian Online reports that Obasa, alongside security officials, had stormed the assembly complex and entered the Speaker’s Office around 12 noon on Thursday.

The development followed the withdrawal of the security aides of the Speaker, Mojisola Meranda.

The assembly has been embroiled in a leadership crisis since Obasa’s removal as speaker and the subsequent election of Meranda.

Obasa was accused by over 90 per cent of the lawmakers of poor leadership style, perpetual lateness to legislative functions and plenary, high-handedness and disregard for colleague lawmakers and the executive, especially the governor, abuse of office and privileges, intimidation and oppression of members among others.

In an attempt to resolve the crisis, some All Progressives Congress bigwigs, notably former governors of Osun, Ogun and Lagos states, Chief Bisi Akande, Segun Osoba, and Akinwunmi Ambode, respectively, among others, on the directive of President Bola Tinubu, had a series of meetings last weekend with political stakeholders in the state including members of the assembly.

The TheNigerian learnt at the end of the meetings that both Obasa and Meranda might be stepping aside for another lawmaker to lead the house.

A member of the Governors Advisory Council, Chief Muraina Taiwo, noted that one of the seven lawmakers from Lagos West was being considered by the party leaders as the new Speaker.

The ousted Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa, has stated that he has resumed his position as the parliament’s leader.

Obasa stated this on Thursday after returning to the assembly complex with police and State Security Service details for the first time since he was removed on January 13.

“I’ve resumed, and I remain the Speaker of the Assembly,” Obasa told reporters on the premises of the House.

Asked whether he has been reinstated as speaker, Obasa said, “I’ve never been removed. Impeachment or removal is democratic and constitutional but in doing that, you must follow the due process. I am not against that. If I do that, then I am not democratic.”

TheNigerian Online reports that Obasa, alongside security officials, had entered the Speaker’s Office around 12 noon on Thursday.

The development followed the withdrawal of the security aides of the Speaker, Mojisola Meranda.

The assembly has been embroiled in a leadership crisis since Obasa’s removal as speaker and the subsequent election of Meranda.

Obasa was accused by over 90 per cent of the lawmakers of poor leadership style, perpetual lateness to legislative functions and plenary, high-handedness and disregard for colleague lawmakers and the executive, especially the governor, abuse of office and privileges, intimidation and oppression of members among others.

In an attempt to resolve the crisis, some All Progressives Congress bigwigs, notably former governors of Osun, Ogun and Lagos states, Chief Bisi Akande, Segun Osoba, and Akinwunmi Ambode, respectively, among others, on the directive of President Bola Tinubu, had a series of meetings last weekend with political stakeholders in the state including members of the assembly.

The TheNigerian learnt at the end of the meetings that both Obasa and Meranda might be stepping aside for another lawmaker to lead the house.

A member of the Governors Advisory Council, Chief Muraina Taiwo, noted that one of the seven lawmakers from Lagos West was being considered by the party leaders as the new Speaker.