The impeachment of Mudashiru Obasa as Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly has ignited political tensions, accompanied by the arrest of his supporters near the assembly complex. Obasa, 52, who had represented Agege Constituency I since 2015, was serving his third term as speaker before being removed over allegations of gross misconduct and abuse of office.
From the window of a police van parked outside the assembly complex, one of the detained men explained their presence: “We are like 20 here, and we are from Orile Agege. We are APC youths. We came to show support for Obasa.”
In an unexpected twist, Mojisola Meranda, the former deputy speaker, was swiftly elected as the new speaker, ushering in a change in the assembly’s leadership.
The detained individuals, who identified themselves as Obasa’s supporters, claimed they had gathered peacefully to back the impeached speaker. However, security personnel intervened, taking them into custody without offering a clear explanation for their actions.
As they awaited further developments in the police van, the men appealed to passersby for food and water. At one point, they broke into a rendition of “On Your Mandate,” a popular song among supporters of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, signaling their allegiance to the All Progressives Congress (APC).