Latest on Lagos state house of assembly crisis and wetin law tok on impeachment of a speaker

BBC News

28-02-2025

Di kasala wey dey rock di Lagos House of Assembly no be like say e go end anytime soon as e enter anoda level on Thursday, 27 February wen di impeached speaker Mudashiru Obasa bin return to di assembly wit entourage of unidentified men and declare imself as di substantive speaker, days afta dem remove am from di position.
Reports say e seize control of di office of di Speaker and hold wetin dem fit describe as plenary session wit four lawmakers wey dey loyal to am. Oda lawmakers wey dey present for di 40-member assembly bin boycott di session.
Na on 13 January, majority of di lawmakers of di Lagos state assembly vote to remove di speaker, Mudashiru Obasa ova allegations of gross misconduct, poor leadership, mismanagement of funds and corruption.
Di majority of di lawmakers come elect and swear in Madam Mojisola Meranda as di new Speaker.
However, di impeached Speaker don maintain say im removal no hold water and e dey illegal as lawmakers no follow constitution to remove am, and e declare say im remain di legitimate speaker of di house.
"I don resume and I still remain di Speaker of di Assembly," Oga Obasa tell tori pipo for di Assembly complex on Thursday.
"Nobody remove me. Impeachment or removal na democratic and constitutional, but if you wan do am, you get to follow due process. We get rules for dis house and house rules wey all state assemblies for di south-west dey follow, but dem no follow am," e tok.
Also, for one interview wit Channels TV on Thursday, Obasa claim say madam Meranda don agree to resign as di Speaker during one peace meeting wey leaders of di party for di state arrange.
"One meeting hold for Marina wia we get in attendance all di party leaders and all di members [of Lagos Assembly] and openly Meranda herself tok say she don step down and she don resign."
Although, Ms Meranda neva react to dis latest tok about her resignation, but one interview she get wit tori pipo on Friday, 28 February, show say she still be di speaker of di assembly.
'Obasa action na invasion' - Mojisola Meranda
Meanwhile, di speaker of di assembly don react to Obasa action, she tell tori pipo say "Invasion and breaking into my office na big one."
Madam speaker also torchlight on di issue of her security details wey tori pipo report say dem withdraw from her.
"I get three or four policemen whereas my normal convoy on my team consist of 12 policemen, four DSS and two anti-bomb. But as I get am dis morning I no get dat," she tok.
Earlier, di Lagos state assembly for dia reaction condemn Obasa action.
"Di Lagos State House of Assembly wish to bring to di attention of Lagosians, Nigerians and di global community one incident wey occur on Thursday, wey involve one unsanctioned attempt to convene a plenary session by di former speaker, Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, plus three members," tok-tok pesin for di house, Steve Ogundipe tok for statement.
Di statement add say di rules wey govern plenary sessions of di house dey clear. Valid sitting, require say dem go don send formal notice to all members, di presence of a quorum, an approved agenda, plus di mace – wey be essential symbol of legislative authority. But dis meeting lack dis requirements.
"Dem no meet any of dis procedural requirements during di purported sitting, as only five out of di 40 members dey present, and dat render di sitting unconstitutional and without legislative effect."
How di crisis for di Lagos state assembly take start
Na on 13 January, majority of di lawmakers of di Lagos state assembly vote to remove di speaker, Mudashiru Obasa ova allegations of gross misconduct, poor leadership, mismanagement of funds and corruption.
Di majority of di lawmakers come elect and swear in Madam Mojisola Meranda as di new Speaker.
Afta majority of di lawmakers elect her as speaker, Madam Meranda bin visit di state Govnor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and di Governing Advisory Council, one body wey dey recognised as di topmost group for di Lagos All Progressives Congress (APC) to seek dia blessings.
Dem elect di new speaker wen Oga Obasa dey out of di kontri, wey e tok say dey wrong.
E say di house bin dey on recess, and dem move motion to adjourn sitting to 18 February, wen di impeachment occur.
"We adjourn properly, so if time reach to reconvene, e get to go through di majority leader, di clerk and di speaker and according to di rule, na only di speaker fit reconvene. So if you no follow dat, e no mata di forgery you dey try to perpetrate," Obasa tok for one recent Channels TV interview.
However, since e return, na one crisis or di oda. Di first time na wen some alleged security officials lock di assembly for several hours and dem no let sitting hold. Dis mata make di speaker cry.
Den, di most recent na wen Obasa storm di assembly and preside ova di plenary as speaker wit four lawmakers present.
Oga Obasa don tok several times say im no get issues wit im removal but wit di process wey dem take remove am, e say due process no dey followed.
However, di issue of di legality of im removal dey for court.
Court adjourn case wey Obasa file against di assembly to March
Di Lagos High Court wey sit for Ikeja on Friday, 28 February rule say make all members of di Assembly dey joined as parties for di suit wey di impeached speaker file.
Justice Yetunde Pinheiro also adjourn di case to 7 March to hear all pending applications for di mata.
Obasa bin drag di assembly go court ova wetin e call unlawful removal.
Di lawsuit, wey e file for February also name di current Speaker, Lasbat Mojisola Meranda, as di defendant.
For di application wey dem date 12 February, wey im lawyer Afolabi Fashanu SAN file, di plaintiff bin claim say 36 lawmakers bin remove am from im position on 13 January wen e dey out of di kontri.
Obasa application dey based on nine grounds, wey focus on di interpretation of various sections of di Constitution of di Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), and di Rules and Standing Orders of di Lagos State House of Assembly.
Di plaintiff dey challenge di constitutionality of di Lagos State House of Assembly to sit and carry out proceedings during recess without di Speaker convening di House or delegating authority to someone else to do so.
Wetin di constitution tok about di removal of a speaker?
Section 92 of di Constitution of di Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, as amended, create di offices of di "Speaker and Deputy Speaker of a House of Assembly wey members of di house go elect from among themselves."
Section 92 (2)c state say di speaker or di deputy go vacate im seat "if e dey removed from office by a resolution of di House of Assembly by di votes of not less dan two-third majority of di members of di house."
Ogbonge legal practitioner Deji Adeyanju wey follow BBC Pidgin tok shed more light on wetin di constitution tok and di standing order of di Lagos state house of assembly.
Adeyanju explain say according to di constitution, di removal of a speaker na internal process, dis one mean say, na members of di house fit decide to remove di speaker, and na 2/3rd of di members fit comot di speaker. Di constitution no also tok di offence wey fit warrant members to vote for di removal of di speaker.
E add say, di Lagos assembly dey operate on standing order wey tok how speaker or im deputy fit dey removed.
Firstly, bifor dem comot speaker, lawmakers wey wan remove am for don present am wit formal notice or motion. Under di house rules, dem also dey give notice period. Although di notice period, no dey mandatory, na for members to prepare for debate, and di time for di notice na at di discretion of those wey dey call for di removal.
Also, dem go give di speaker opportunity to defend any accuse against am.
Adeyanju add say wetin di constitution tok na say members of di house must reach a resolution to impeach di speaker, and na two-thrid of di members of di house fit vote for di removal of di speaker or im deputy.
Speaker or deputy speaker need to dey di house bifor dem impeach dem?
One major concern to Obasa na di fact say di impeachment happun for im absence. "If you wan do anything, do am well. Dem remove me becos I dey out of di kontri. Lagos na special place; we no fit belittle di state.
"Wen dem remove former speaker, Rt. Hon Jokotola Pelumi, e dey for di assembly, and we no invite policemen. Wen dem remove my sister, former deputy speaker of di house, Hon. Adefunmilayo Tejuosho, we no invite di police," di embattled lawmaker tok.
Adeyanju say di constitution dey silent on if di speaker need to dey present for di plenary during im removal.
E tok again say wetin di constitution state na two-third majority of di members of di house fit initiate di impeachment process of a speaker.
Although, di lawmakers tok say dem give Obasa di notice, however, Obasa tok say di house dey on recess wen dem impeach am, but di standing order no give room for recess, Adeyanju add.
Dis no be di first time, speaker of di house of assembly go dey removed.
For January 2024, Ogun State House of Assembly bin impeach Speaker Kunle Oluomo.
Na 18 out of di 36 members of di state Assembly bin vote for di impeachment for dia plenary session on Tuesday.
Dem impeach Oluomo for alleged embezzlement of funds, high handedness and oda type offences like dat.