A former Deputy Majority Leader of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Olumiyiwa Jimoh, says that Mudashiru Obasa should be suspended from the House for insisting that he remains the Speaker of the Assembly despite his removal.
“He (Obasa) claims that he is still the speaker which I think he knows that the implication is automatic suspension. I feel he should be suspended for that. It is an impersonation,” Jimoh said on a live television programme on Monday.
“How can he be the bona fide speaker of the house? It is going to lead to his suspension, he knows its implication, he has been in the house for almost two decades. If I were to be in the house, I am going to move a motion for his suspension,” Jimoh said.
Obasa was removed as Lagos speaker on Monday, January 13, 2025, when more than two-thirds of the 40-member legislative house voted him out over alleged misconduct.
Obasa’s then deputy, Mojisola Meranda, was immediately elected the new Speaker, becoming the first female to take charge of the legislative body in the South West state.
Obasa, from Agege Constituency I, was first elected into the House in 2007.
He has since been in the chamber since then. He emerged speaker in June 2015 before his removal in January 2025.
On Saturday, January 25, 2025, Obasa said he remained the speaker until the right thing has been done, faulting the militarisation of the assembly complex during the impeachment process.
He also claimed his removal as speaker took place in his absence — when he was out of Nigeria.
However, Jimoh, a former member of the House, said Obasa does not need to be in the House before he can be removed as speaker.
“He (Obasa) doesn’t need to be in the House to be impeached. It is stipulated in the constitution: section 92 sub-section 2 states it clearly,” Jimoh said.
The former lawmaker also claimed that Obasa was instrumental in his removal as deputy majority leader of the House while he was a member of the parliament.
“I was not happy that he removed me. I was not notified about the process of my removal. I didn’t contend it because he coerced and intimidated members to sign for my removal. I took it in good fate,” Jimoh said.
“I was not happy that Obasa removed me as Deputy Majority Leader from the LSHA. I’m happy that he has been impeached,” he noted.
On of the reasons for his removal, Jimoh said it was “because I do challenge him on some of his policies that were anti-democratic and anti-due process.”
“I am happy that it is the new members who removed him,” he said, whilst asking anti-graft agencies to probe the allegations against the former speaker.
