President Bola Tinubu has instructed members of the Lagos State House of Assembly to prepare for the reinstatement of Mudashiru Obasa as Speaker, sources familiar with the matter told Peoples Gazette.
This directive comes three weeks after Obasa was impeached over allegations of gross misconduct and abuse of office.
He was impeached on January 13, 2025, and his deputy, Mojisola Meranda, was immediately elected and sworn in as his successor.
Meanwhile, Obasa has maintained that he remains the Speaker and has described his impeachment as unlawful and null and void.
Obasa contended that the impeachment process did not follow constitutional procedures.
However, in an exclusive report on Sunday, Peoples Gazette revealed that over the weekend, Tinubu instructed Lagos Assembly lawmakers to prepare for Obasa’s return, as the political cost of his removal could outweigh the benefits of addressing his misconduct.
According to the sources, the President’s proposal is for Obasa to return as Speaker for a short period before resigning on his own terms.
The Assembly members are predominantly APC members, meaning any direction taken by the ruling party lawmakers will scale through.
“The president has sent instruction that we should start preparing to let him come back,” a senior Lagos politician who participated in a series of meetings this weekend told the online newspaper.
“The president said Obasa will spend only a short time before resigning on his terms.”
“We have agreed to let him come back to give him a soft landing that he told us he deserved because of the serious political consequences of allowing this matter to endure,” the politician said, adding that they would have done things differently if they were wielding the power to make such an ultimate decision.
However, some lawmakers are afraid that Obasa may return with a vengeful mission after his return to the House.
“We’re afraid that bringing him back will be like trying to pacify a snake after its head was severed.Its venom will be super deadly.”a source said.
Meanwhile, the report stated that Tinubu is scheduled to meet with the lawmakers in Abuja on Monday to ensure everyone is on board with the plan.
“Many of us have agreed that he should be allowed to return because we can only see the beginning of this fight but not how it may end,” the politician said.
“The meeting is scheduled for Monday, and some of us still in Lagos are already preparing to leave for Abuja.”
The report also mentioned that Obasa’s successor, Lasbat Mojisola Meranda, has been unable to move into her official residence since her inauguration as Speaker because Obasa has refused to vacate, citing the need to remove his personal belongings.
On January 25, SaharaReporters revealed that during a recent meeting with Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Obasa, and other APC stakeholders, Obasa appealed to President Tinubu to persuade the new House leadership to grant him access to the official residence to retrieve his belongings.
According to a source, Tinubu granted this request.
Sources also indicated that during the meeting, Obasa argued that his impeachment should be nullified because he had hidden the two maces belonging to the state House of Assembly.
However, he was informed that the mace used during the session in which he was impeached was brought from the old Assembly building.
“President Tinubu had summoned all the stakeholders; Lagos lawmakers, Lagos Governor’s Advisory Council, Obasa himself and Lagos Governor to Abuja for consultations and understanding,” one of the sources told SaharaReporters.
“The President was unhappy the removal of Obasa was orchestrated without his express approval, and that he learnt about it from the news and social media. Except this lack of approval, he told Obasa that ‘he was not born a Speaker, and that speakership was not created with him’.
“Obasa pushed for the nullification of his impeachment on the grounds that the mace used to conduct business of the day on that fateful day wasn’t the official mace of the Lagos House of Assembly, considering he hid away the two maces while travelling out of the country.”
“The lawmakers defeated his argument by confirming the mace used as the old mace of the parliament in the old building of the assembly.
Seeing the futility of his claims, Obasa requested the President to prevail on the new leadership to grant him access to his belongings at the Speaker’s lodge and guest house.
This was granted by the President,” the source added.
Meanwhile, Peoples Gazette reported that First Lady Remi Tinubu had prevented the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from arresting Obasa over alleged fraud, although an investigation into his use of public funds may still proceed.
According to Peoples Gazette, it is unclear, but she may have influenced her husband’s decision.
“Look, some lawmakers are very angry that the president decided to humiliate them like this.
“But they don’t want to lead any resistance against the president, who is also the party’s leader.”our source said.
According to The Gazette, Obasa met Governor Sanwo-Olu on Saturday to finalise his return as Speaker, which may come as soon as next week.
However, SaharaReporters’ attempts to reach Obasa for comment were unsuccessful, as he did not answer calls to his mobile phone or respond to messages.
Upon his recent return to Nigeria from the US, where he was during the impeachment process, Obasa claimed that his impeachment was conducted using a fake mace.
During a welcome event hosted in his honour by supporters from Agege, Alimosho, and Kosofe local government areas in Ikeja GRA, Obasa said, “Let me ask you, early in the morning of that day, policemen invaded the House of Assembly, led by the commissioner of police. What was he doing in the House of Assembly? What was his business in the House of Assembly?
“My house in Agege was invaded by more than 200 policemen and this house was blocked, my people from Agege were detained in a black Maria.
My children did not sleep in this house on that day because they were locked out and my wife kept inside. House arrest!”
He admitted that he had been involved in the removal of other people from their positions in the assembly, but claimed they were done in accordance with the law.
“Fine, I cannot deny the fact. But let us ask questions, when Pelumi, my brother, who I love so much and fondly call Brother Waheed, was removed, he was in the House and there was no police involvement. It was done on the floor of the House without any breaking into the chamber and without presenting (a) fake mace,” he said.
