Security operatives from the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigeria Police took control of the Lagos State House of Assembly on Monday morning, sealing off the offices of Speaker Mojisola Meranda, her deputy, and the clerk.
By 10 a.m., armed personnel had secured the Alausa, Ikeja premises, frisking passersby. Despite the heavy presence of security forces, Meranda arrived with her convoy around 11:15 a.m.
The move follows ex-Speaker Mudashiru Obasa’s legal challenge to his January 13 removal, which he has described as a “coup”. While abroad at the time, 32 out of 40 lawmakers voted him out.
Obasa has since filed a lawsuit at the Lagos State High Court, seeking an expedited hearing to contest his impeachment. He argues that the House lacked constitutional authority to convene and vote him out during recess.
The dispute has sparked divisions within Lagos APC’s Governance Advisory Council (GAC), the party’s highest decision-making body in the state.
As tensions rise, the court is expected to rule on Obasa’s application for accelerated proceedings, a decision that could have major political implications for the state legislature.
