LAGOS, Nigeria – The Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, announced on Tuesday, June 6, 2023, that the state parliament is set to pass new laws concerning property and business ownership in the state.
This was stated in his acceptance speech as he began his third term as speaker during the inauguration of the 10th Lagos assembly.
Obasa’s comments come on the heels of the 2023 general elections, which saw Lagos residents reportedly divided along ethno-political and religious lines.
Many Igbos in the state supported the Labour Party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour for the state governorship election.
However, these developments sparked reactions when the ruling All Progressives Congress presidential candidate, APC, Bola Tinubu, lost Lagos to Obi on February 25.
Addressing the Lagos assembly, Obasa declared, “There would be laws…in the areas of economy and commerce, property and titles, and we will reverse all that is reversible to protect the interest of the indigenes.”
He emphasized that “Lagos is a Yoruba land as against the assertions of some people that it is a no man’s land,” and he added that part of the legislative agenda is to translate laws passed by the House into the Yoruba language.
According to Obasa, the new land and property laws are tailored to favor indigenes of the state.
He added, “We also aim at achieving our collective goals of creating a robust legislative framework that protects the interest of our people. Going forward in this wise, we are going to employ all legislative instruments for the support of the indigenes of Lagos.”
He reiterated that the legislature would take actions and pass laws and resolutions that protect the interests of the indigenes in the areas of economy, commerce, property, and titles.
