Ogundipe Stephen Olukayode, the lawmaker representing Oshodi-Isolo Constituency 1 in the Lagos State House of Assembly, confirmed All Progressives Congress (APC) leadership’s involvement in an ongoing power tussle between ex-speaker Mudasiru Obasa and Speaker Mojisola Meranda.
Olukayode also stated that he was denied entry into the Assembly Complex on Thursday as rumours of an Obasa takeover spread.
In a video shared by the House of Assembly’s official X account, Olukayode told journalists that the interference in the legislative arm had caused disruptions in their operations. He named the APC leadership as the entity involved in the situation at the House.
Olukayode explained that he was denied entry by the security operatives who told him he could not access the house. He described the situation as “embarrassing”. Olukayode spoke in the presence of fellow lawmakers.
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Happening Now:House of Assembly under siege by ex- speaker, @mudashiru_obasa Members reiterate their resolve on his removal.Take a listen!@officialABAT @NGRPresident @PoliceNG @OfficialDSSNG @followlasg @jidesanwoolu @rthonmjmeranda pic.twitter.com/pGXMdFjzKF— LagosHouseOfAssembly (@lshaofficial) February 27, 2025
Olukayode said that while they had been law-abiding, he expected the APC leaders to confront them with their decisions and stop playing games.
“We appreciate the press for doing their duty and enduring all the tribulations to be here with us. This is Lagos. This is the Lagos State House of Assembly,” Olukayode said.
“We were approached by our leaders and advised to remain calm and take things easy, but in the process, we were choked. We are shocked to see what is happening today and are still expecting them to tell us where we went wrong or what really went wrong.
“We won’t take the law into our hands, just as I told the staff not to take the law into their hands. But we all belong to different constituencies, and we have our mandate. Whatever is going to happen, the leadership should speak with us and not stage this charade we are witnessing. We are not happy, and we are already demystified.
“We were shocked to see what is happening despite the fact that this is Lagos; this is the centre of excellence, where everything starts and stops. We will be law-abiding. We have not gone out of our way or done anything against the state or anybody. But we also want to be respected, to be given our dignity, to be shown that we were elected.
“So, I am appealing to the leadership of our party: we can’t continue this way. We are all here, you can see us. These are honourable members.
“They have taken us to court, and it is for us to let the process follow its due course. But what we are seeing today is a charade. It is uncalled for, and it is an embarrassment. Because for me to even enter the gate (sic), I was stopped and told by my security operatives that I couldn’t enter the House of Assembly. It is an embarrassment, and this must stop.
‘We have said this clearly, we are not against the leadership’s decision. But they should call us and tell us to our faces, not let us hear through rumours.”
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On January 13, Obasa, the former speaker of the House of Assembly, was impeached by his fellow lawmakers on allegations of fraud and financial mismanagement.
Meranda, Obasa’s deputy and the lawmaker representing Apapa 1 Constituency, was voted as the new speaker on the same day.
On Thursday, Obasa returned to the house after his absence since he was impeached and said he remained the speaker. He claimed he was never impeached or removed.
However, on the state legislature’s website, Meranda remains the speaker of the house.
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