Obasa: ‘Mr President Cannot Be Reduced To Level Of A Local Leader’

The Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has dismissed claims that President Bola Tinubu played a direct role in influencing the resolution of the leadership crisis at the Lagos State House of Assembly, which led to the reinstatement of Mudashiru Obasa as Speaker.

While acknowledging that some lawmakers had internal grievances, the party insisted that the intervention was at the lawmakers’ request and was not imposed by the President.

In an exclusive interview with The Guardian on Tuesday, Lagos APC spokesperson, Seye Oladejo, refuted allegations that Tinubu had a personal stake in the outcome of the leadership dispute.

“If the President had a ‘vested interest’, the matter would not have dragged on for so long. The truth is that the legislators themselves invited the party to mediate,” Oladejo stated.

He explained that the Assembly members were divided into factions and found it difficult to reach a resolution on their own, which led to the party’s intervention.

Oladejo said, “All the members of the Assembly belonged to different sides, and they claimed they couldn’t address the issue. Therefore, they called on the party to intervene between the warring gladiators. It was only after several meetings, negotiations, and political maneuvering failed that they invited the party.”

Party’s Role Was Advisory, Not Authoritative

Oladejo further clarified that APC’s role was purely advisory, and that the lawmakers were not forced to implement any of the party’s recommendations.

The spokesperson said, “The party’s role was just advisory. Otherwise, they could have rejected all we suggested to them. It only became binding because they implemented what we proposed at the plenary on Monday.”

He also accused opposition parties of deliberately misrepresenting the situation to paint the APC as anti-democratic.

Oladejo added, “It is part of the politics of the opposition to say that APC and Tinubu didn’t allow the independence of the legislators. The party didn’t dictate to them. Mr. President cannot be reduced to the level of a local leader.”

The Lagos Assembly had been embroiled in a prolonged leadership crisis, following the removal of Obasa as Speaker by 33 out of 39 lawmakers on January 13, 2025. His successor, Mojisola Meranda, resigned on Monday, paving the way for Obasa’s reinstatement.