ABUJA, Nigeria – President Bola Tinubu has intervened in the leadership crisis rocking the Lagos State House of Assembly, meeting with Speaker Mudashiru Obasa and aggrieved lawmakers at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Wednesday, March 12, 2025.
The closed-door meeting, which lasted over an hour, ended with the President insisting that Obasa remain Speaker while urging him to foster unity among his colleagues.
Obasa, who arrived at the Villa around 2:50 pm, was led separately to the President’s office, while other lawmakers arrived earlier in two coaster buses.
Although the agenda of the meeting was not disclosed, sources revealed that it was aimed at resolving the recent leadership crisis in the Assembly.
Emerging from the meeting at about 4:30 pm, lawmakers were heard singing “On your mandate, we shall stand,” a popular political anthem associated with Tinubu’s supporters, as they made their way to the waiting buses.
Obasa, accompanied by House of Representatives member James Faleke, declined to speak with journalists after the meeting.
When asked about the outcome, Faleke simply said, “It went well.”
A source within the Assembly, who spoke on condition of anonymity, disclosed that the meeting was a peace parley and that it was agreed Obasa would remain Speaker.
“Obasa is staying, and we have no choice but to obey the President. The meeting was more of a family meeting,” the lawmaker said.
The source added that Tinubu warned Obasa to carry his colleagues along and ensure peace within the Assembly.
“The President said he should let peace reign, and so based on that, we have accepted,” the lawmaker stated.
Tinubu also directed Obasa to withdraw the court case related to the crisis, according to the source.
“The President has instructed him to withdraw it,” the lawmaker said.
The crisis began when Obasa was impeached by some of his colleagues on allegations of financial misappropriation and high-handedness.
However, he was reinstated on March 3 2025 following interventions by the All Progressives Congress (APC) leadership and the party’s Governing Advisory Council (GAC).
Despite his reinstatement, tensions within the Assembly have persisted, with some lawmakers reportedly apologising to Obasa during the meeting.
