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TROUBLE IN LAGOS GAC: ADEFUYE, OBANIKORO CLASH OVER OBASA’S IMPEACHMENT
A member of the Governor’s Advisory Council (GAC), Musiliu Obanikoro, has strongly criticized the statement made by his colleague, Anthony Adefuye, expressing support for the impeached Speaker of the Lagos House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa.
In the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State, the highest decision-making body is the GAC.
The council was formed and headed by President Bola Tinubu, which consists of major stakeholders of the party within the state overseeing the affairs of the party. It takes major decisions such as mode of primaries, candidates of the party in elections and even the executives of the party.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Obasa (APC-Agege 1) was removed by lawmakers on January 13 over alleged misconduct and replaced by the then Deputy Speaker, Mrs. Mojisola Meranda.
Speaking publicly for the first time about his impeachment on Saturday, Obasa claimed that the process had not followed due procedure.
Addressing his supporters in Ikeja, he asserted that he remained the Speaker of the House and would resume his legislative duties soon, while also denying the corruption allegations against him.
Adefuye, a member of the Lagos State Governance Advisory Council (GAC), voiced his support for the embattled former Speaker, agreeing with Obasa’s stance that his removal had been illegal.
In a recent interview, Adefuye remarked, “What he is saying is that he was illegally removed and the procedure was faulty and I agree with him.”
Reacting to Adefuye’s remarks, Obanikoro, a two-time minister, described the statement as reckless. He said, “The statement of Senator Adefuye on the removal of the former Speaker, Mudashiru Obasa, is very unfortunate, childish and inconsequential.”
Obanikoro continued, criticizing the timing and nature of Adefuye’s comments: “Senator Adefuye’s comment shouldn’t have come up. As leaders, if there are serious issues of this magnitude, rushing to make press statements or personal statements on such issues is unbecoming.”
The former ambassador added, “Since GAC as a unit has not made any pronouncement on the subject matter, it is irresponsible of any member of that privileged body to go public and make comments on an issue that is as sensitive as that,” Obanikoro said.
As a member of GAC himself, Obanikoro stressed the importance of respecting organizational hierarchy: “Moreover, our leader, the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, waded in on the matter, so I believe nobody should come out individually to express an opinion based on privileged status,” he said.
