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Court Permits All Lagos Assembly Members To Join Obasa’s Suit

 


The Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja has ordered that all members of the Lagos House of Assembly be joined as parties in the suit filed by the disputed speaker, Hon. Mudashiru Obasa.

Justice Yetunde Pinheiro gave this order after hearing the application filed by some members of the house seeking to be joined in the proceedings.

Through their lawyers, Senior Advocates of Nigeria, Olu Daramola and Dada Awosika, members of the Assembly who were not initially listed as defendants in the suit filed by Obasa moved their applications seeking to be joined as parties.

Hon. Obasa had approached the court to challenge his removal by at least 35 of his colleagues on January 13, 2025.

In the application dated February 12, 2025, and filed by his lawyer, Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Chief Afolabi Fashanu, the claimant stated that he was removed from his position on January 13, 2025, by 35 lawmakers while he was out of the country.

At the proceedings on Friday, Senior Advocates of Nigeria, Mr. Tayo Oyetibo led Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Bimbo Akeredolu, and other lawyers to represent the Speaker, Hon. Mojisola Meranda.

Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mr. Femi Falana led Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Muiz Banire, and other counsels to represent 34 lawmakers loyal to Speaker Mojisola Meranda, while Senior Advocates, Olu Daramola and Dada Awosika represented other members of the house seeking to be joined in the suit.

There was also a mild drama in court when another counsel, Abang Mkpandiok got up to challenge Falana’s representation of the Lagos State House of Assembly

Mkpandiok said he had been briefed last night by the Assembly and had filed his motion for a change of counsel in the matter this morning.

He noted that the choice of counsel is a fundamental human right and urged the court to take his application first.

Mr Falana in his objection told the court that he had not been served and remained the counsel on record for the Assembly.

Mr Oyetibo also said he had not been served with the application.

Mkpandiok then elected to serve the application on the other counsel in court.

After checking the court’s records, Justice Pinheiro noted that the application for change of counsel was not ripe for hearing.

The court said, “As counsel himself has admitted, that application has not been served on all parties, I’ll defer same pending compliance with the court’s rules.

The court also held that the application for accelerated hearing would not be taken today.

The court has adjourned till March 7 to hear all pending applications in the matter.

After the proceedings, Meranda while speaking to journalists denied that she had resigned. She also condemned what she said was the invasion of the house on Thursday by the removed Speaker, Obasa.

On the issue of her security details, Mrs Meranda told journalists that her security which includes 12 police officers and four DSS operatives, has not been fully restored, as she presently has only four police officers attached to her.


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