- Safiu Kehinde
Impeached Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa, has returned to his position following the resignation of the former Speaker, Mojisola Meranda.
The lawmaker representing Agege Constituency 1 was re-elected as Speaker by members of the Assembly, bring the chamber’s leadership crisis to an end.
NPO reported that Obasa earlier held a brief meeting with the lawmakers which also had Meranda in attendance.
Also present at the meeting were leaders of the state chapter of the All Progressives Congress, including Chairman, Cornelius Ojelabi, as well as the state Attorney General, Lawal Pedro (SAN).
Following the meeting, the lawmakers would proceed for the plenary where Meranda and other principal officers tendered their resignation letters.
This was after the lawmakers took turn in commending Meranda over her short-lived leadership.
She would be received with standing ovation and applauses as she stepped down from the Speakership seat back to her previous position as the Deputy Speaker.
The plenary would proceed to the swearing-in of Obasa as the Speaker of the House.
Meanwhile, NPO earlier reported the lawmakers had on Sunday held a meeting with the Governor’s Advisory Council (GAC) at the State House, Marina.
At the meeting were the Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, his Deputy, Obafemi Hamzat, impeached Speaker, Obasa, MIranda, Chief of Staff to the Governor, Tayo Ayinde, and a host of others.
It was agreed that Miranda, according to the reliable source, will return to her position as the Deputy Speaker.
At the meeting, it was gathered that both sides were prevailed upon to sheath their swords and allow peace to reign in the House of Assembly, which has come under tension in almost one month since the removal of Obasa.
NPO Reports however gathered that Obasa, after the three weeks, may not resign as the truce reached was just to see an end to the crisis that had engulfed the legislative house for weeks.
The source informed NPO Reports that each member of the House was made to speak at the meeting where they respectively spoke on their grievances against Obasa.
At some point, lawmakers who were said to be in support of Obasa were asked to queue behind him to show how popular he is in the House.
Only seven members reportedly showed solidarity with the former Speaker while the remaining 33 lawmakers stayed behind Miranda.
“Obasa himself could see how unpopular he is in the House. Perhaps that was why he was begging the members assuring them he would change as from now,” the source said.
NPO Reports reliably gathered that the resolution was the final prescription ordered by President Bola Tinubu, who, it was learnt had expressed misgivings at the manner in which Obasa was impeached without prior knowledge.
This view was corroborated by the chairman of the GAC, Olusi, during an interview with Arise Television at the weekend.
Olusi had said that the lawmakers lacked the power to have impeached Obasa without informing the leaders of the party.
Recall that tension peaked at the House of Assembly last week after Obasa made a surprising return to the House backed up by heavy security operatives.