Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has vehemently denied any involvement in the impeachment of Rt Hon. Mudasiru Obasa, the former Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly.
Obasa, who had held the position since 2015, was removed on Monday, with his deputy, Mojisola Meranda, elected as the new Speaker.
Sanwo-Olu distanced himself from the impeachment, with his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Gboyega Akosile, emphasising that the matter was purely a legislative one.
Akosile stated that the impeachment had nothing to do with the governor, adding that it was handled independently by the Assembly in line with the constitutional separation of powers between the Executive, Legislative, and Judiciary.
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“It is purely a legislative matter and the Assembly handled it the best way they could. It has nothing to do with the governor,” Akosile said.
Speculation surrounding Obasa’s impeachment has centred on the 2027 Lagos governorship race, with suggestions that Obasa was positioning himself for a shot at the All Progressives Congress (APC) ticket. Other political figures, including Seyi Tinubu, the son of President Bola Tinubu, former Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, and Senator Tokunbo Abiru, are also said to be eyeing the ticket, with endorsements already flooding in for Seyi Tinubu.
However, Obasa, who served as Speaker for the longest term in Lagos history, has publicly insisted that he is not too young or inexperienced to contest the governorship election.
The Coalition of Nigerian Youth Leaders has already endorsed Seyi Tinubu for the position in 2027, while some groups are pushing for Ambode’s return to complete a 16-year tenure for Christians before power shifts back to the Muslims in Lagos.
Former Speaker of the Lagos Assembly, Adeyemi Ikuforiji, spoke on the matter in an interview with TVC, dismissing the idea that Obasa’s impeachment was connected to his ambitions for the governorship.
“I don’t think I will agree with that because the present governor is in his second term. He can’t run for that office again. So, there is no reason why he will be annoyed that the Speaker wants to run for the office of the governor. That cannot be part of this thing,” Ikuforiji said.
He also noted that while there were larger political interests at play, he did not believe anyone in the Governor’s Advisory Council (GAC) would be bothered by Obasa’s potential run for governor.
“Yes, there are bigger interests but I don’t think anybody in the Governor’s Advisory Council will be annoyed with a Speaker wanting to run for the office of the governor,” he added.
Meanwhile, it has been reported that President Bola Tinubu endorsed Obasa’s impeachment during his recent visit to Lagos.
