Politics

Obasa: Tinubu’s Abuja Meeting Fails To Calm Lagos Assembly Impasse As Crisis Deepens

Published

3 months ago

March 16, 2025

Despite President Bola Tinubu’s last Wednesday peace accord, brokered among two warring parties in the Lagos State House of Assembly, led by Mudashiru Obasa and Mojisola Meranda over speakership tussle, the development has failed to calm high tensions among lawmakers and stakeholders in the state.

Tinubu had, at the end of the meeting, directed aggrieved lawmakers to work with Obasa.

Obasa was ousted as Speaker on January 13, 2025 by about 35 of the 40 lawmakers over allegations of highhandedness, financial misappropriation, and despotic tendencies, among others, and was replaced by Meranda, who was his deputy before the impeachment.

The development generated a lot of conflict putting the House and Governance Advisory Council, GAC, the highest decision-making body of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the state, party faithful, supporters, in disarray. The crisis prompted President Tinubu to draft a high-powered committee made up of Chief Bisi Akande and Aremo Olusegun Osoba, among others, to finally arrived at a truce.

The panel subsequently, convinced Meranda to resign her position as the Speaker of the House after a deal reportedly agreed upon by all stakeholders who have been mediating to ensure that the crisis was put to rest.

Speculation had it that all the parties agreed on a deal which was for Meranda to resign while Obasa would be returned as Speaker and after 48 hours, would also resign his position. The arrangement, it was learnt, was to pave the way for a new Speaker from Lagos West as demanded by the 34 aggrieved lawmakers.

After the peace deal and Meranda’s resignation, Obasa was subsequently re-nominated for the position of speakership by one of his loyalists in the House, Noheem Adam, a lawmaker representing Eti-Osa 1 and seconded by his colleague, Nureni Akinsanya, representing Mushin 1.

Obasa’s expected resignation

However, Obasa’s attempts to win back the lost loyalty of the aggrieved members hit a brick wall when he called for a truce meeting, a day after he was reluctantly re-elected. The aggrieved lawmakers felt betrayed by his action as they expected him to also tender his resignation in tandem with the agreed structure for settling the Assembly crisis permanently. Obasa’s action opened a kind of cold war in the Assembly which is currently on indefinite recess.

Meanwhile, the APC in Lagos has said that the issue of possible resignation by the Speaker was not included in the terms of settlement reached to end the leadership crisis.

The party’s spokesman in the state, Seye Oladejo, told Sunday Vanguard that he was not aware of such an arrangement in the terms of settlement during the negotiation period by the party.

“To the best of my knowledge there was no time the arrangement for Obasa to resign came up in the terms of settlement of the crisis.

“To me, all this struggle is all about instance, before any candidate would emerge there must have been sacrifice by others”, Oladejo stated.
(VANGUARD)

Related Topics:#Tinubu Lagos Assembly Meranda obasa

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Politics

Damagum Is PDP’s Problem – Ex-Benue Gov Suswam

Published

2 hours ago

June 25, 2025

Editor

Former governor of Benue State, Gabriel Suswam, on Wednesday declared that the acting National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Umar Damagum, is the problem of the party.

Suswam, who insisted that Damagum is not a leader, said the party has been drifting downwards since he assumed the role of acting National Chairman.

Featuring on Channels Television’s Politics Today, the former governor said, “There is no integrity in the leadership of PDP, I’m happy that Wike said it.

Politics

Confusion In PDP As NWC Counters Damagum, Rejects Anyanwu’s Reinstatement

Published

4 hours ago

June 25, 2025

Editor

The National Working Committee, NWC, of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has dismissed claims that the party’s 100th National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting scheduled for Monday, June 30, 2025, has been postponed.

A statement signed by key members of the NWC on Wednesday also denied reports that Samuel Anyanwu has been reinstated as the party’s National Secretary.

The NWC said the statement comes in response to a press briefing earlier in the day by the Acting National Chairman, Ambassador Umar Damagum.

DAILY POST reports that Damagum had announced the postponement of the NEC meeting and said Anyanwu is to resume as National Secretary.

Rejecting Damagum’s declarations, the NWC said his pronouncements were contrary to the resolution of the 99th NEC meeting, which scheduled the next NEC session for June 30 and referred all matters concerning the National Secretary’s office to that meeting.

“The pronouncements by the Acting National Chairman have no foundation as no organ of the Party (including the NWC), individual or group has the power to cancel, overrule, veto or vary the resolution of the National Executive Committee (NEC),” the statement read.

Citing Section 31 (3) of the PDP Constitution (as amended in 2017), the NWC emphasized that NEC is the highest decision-making organ of the party after the National Convention and that its resolutions are binding on all members and organs of the party.

The NWC described the announcement regarding Anyanwu’s resumption as “misleading” and reaffirmed that the matter remains under the jurisdiction of the forthcoming NEC meeting.

The statement was jointly signed by Deputy National Chairman (South), Ambassador Taofeek Arapaja, Acting National Secretary, Setonji Koshoedo, National Treasurer, Ahmed Yayari Mohammed, National Auditor, Okechukwu Obiechina Daniel, and National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, among others.

Politics

FCT Polls: APC Releases Names Of Primary Election Committee Members

Published

4 hours ago

June 25, 2025

Editor

The ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, has unveiled names of members of its primary election committees for the 2026 Federal Capital Territory, FCT, chairmanship polls.

This was contained in a statement on its official X handle on Wednesday.

The committees, appointed for the six area councils, are made up of chairmen, secretaries and members.

The statement said that an inauguration ceremony for the appointed chairmen and secretaries took place on June 25 at the APC national secretariat in Wuse 2, Abuja.

“For Gwagwalada area council, the committee will be chaired by Hon Shafi’u Duwan, with Hon Yahaya Shehu Maradun as secretary,” the statement read.

According to the statement, in Abuja Municipal Area Council, AMAC, Habibu Ibrahim will spearhead the committee, while Margaret Duru will serve as secretary.

It added that Austin Agada will chair the Bwari area council committee, with Sanusi Sa’idu Kiru as secretary.

In addition, the statement revealed that in Abaji, Hon Afolarin Mayowa Samuel would oversee the committee, while Hon Abdullahi Maharazu will act as secretary.

For Kwali, the statement named Akombo Benedict Imoter, as the committee chairman, and would be assisted by Hon Gambo Rimi as secretary.

Barr Yakubu Bello chairs the committee for Kuje area council, while Engr Umar Shehu will serve as secretary.

It will be recalled that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, On January 22, said it had fixed February 21, 2026, for the conduct of the FCT area council elections.

According to the INEC chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, the last area council election in the FCT was held on February 12, 2022, adding that the tenure of the current chairmen and councillors will end next year.

He further stated said the final list of candidates will be published on September 22, 2025, adding that campaigns will commence on September 24 and end at midnight of February 19, 2026.