Hon. Mojisola Lasbat Meranda, the former Deputy Speaker, has been elected as the new Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly.
Her ascension follows the impeachment of Mudashiru Obasa, her predecessor, for gross misconduct and abuse of office on Monday, 13th January.
Obasa’s impeachment came amidst allegations of financial impropriety. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had received a petition accusing him of using proxy companies to embezzle funds from the Assembly, violating procurement regulations, and making unauthorized financial decisions.
The petition, filed by the Progressive Youth Movement of Ikeja, detailed allegations of unauthorized financial decisions, as the Finance Management Committee had not met officially since the 10th Assembly’s inauguration, allowing Obasa to make unilateral financial decisions.
It also accused him of awarding a N469 million contract for the Construction of Ikeja Local Government Secretariat to Orgnitek Consult Limited, allegedly a proxy company, and approving N200 million for a thanksgiving ceremony at the Assembly, deemed excessive by the petitioners.
Obasa denied these allegations, describing them as “nonsensical” and politically motivated. He questioned the reasonableness of the expenditures and denied any personal involvement in the accused companies.
