Mudashiru Obasa was impeached on Monday afternoon in what lawmakers said was an inevitable decision to scrimp the efficiency and integrity of the Lagos State House of Assembly. 

The roll call said 32 out of 40 members voted to sack Mr Obasa following a motion raised by Femi Saheed (Kosofe II) and seconded by Aro Moshood Abiodun (Ikorodu II). Mojisola Lasbat Meranda (Apapa I) was subsequently voted in as Lagos House Speaker, the first woman to attain the position.

The lawmakers raised allegations ranging from corruption to abuse of office and intimidation, but the main prong of their complaint, which created the perfect storm that ended Mr Obasa’s nearly 10-year reign as Speaker, was a Peoples Gazette story on January 10 about how he drew 43.5 billion for backup vehicles for lawmakers. 

Even though the breakdown showed N1.1 billion should go to each lawmaker in the 40-member House, some of them said they did not receive such benefits and promptly moved the fraud up on a list of their quibbles against the ousted leader, 

The Gazette exposed similar corruption activities by Mr Obasa in 2020. The EFCC invited him for questioning but did not file charges at the time. After his removal, anti-graft sources told our reporters their investigation would resume in earnest.

Abiodun Tobun (Epe I) said the decision to remove Mr Obasa was “inevitable”, noting the lawmakers took a near-unanimous position to preserve the “integrity” of the House of Assembly and Lagos State.

Mr Obasa has resisted claims of wrongdoing made against him by his colleagues and other entities and insisted his wealth was legitimately earned. 

When he was removed on Monday afternoon, after The Gazette’s story circulated among members, it was barely 6:00 a.m. in Atlanta, Georgia. According to people familiar with his activities, Mr Obasa was relaxing in a family home after attending a conference of lawyers.  

Mr Obasa purchased the residence in nearby Lawrenceville, Georgia, in May 2019 for $424,742, per property records seen by The Gazette. 

The property along Matt Springs Drive sits on 505 square feet of land. Initially purchased as a single-family home with four bathrooms and four bedrooms, the Obasas upgraded it to seven bedrooms and five baths, and it is now valued at $654,602, records said. The Gazette has withheld the residence’s specific block number in deference to Mr Obasa’s family privacy.

Mr Obasa paid $40,000 in taxes on the property in 2024. That amount alone was at least five times Mr Obasa’s annual statutory earnings as Lagos Speaker. 

The suburban Atlanta property in Gwinnett County was acquired on May 23, 2019, during Mr Obasa’s first term as Speaker. Its deed was completed in August 2019, weeks after he was sworn in for a second term. He was 1.5 years into his third speakership tenure when he was ousted on Monday. 

“No one who is a public official in Nigeria makes the kind of money that Mudashiru Obasa spends on assets in the U.S., much less in Nigeria and other parts of the world,” anti-corruption campaigner Eric Okonkwo said. “It’s just him showing the world how far he can take public graft.” 

Mr Obasa was not elected to a House leadership role following his impeachment, which now makes him a Speaker emeritus and floor member. It was unclear whether or not he would return from his U.S. trip to resume his legislative activities as an ordinary member for the first time since 2015. His chief spokesman did not return The Gazette’s request seeking his comment on Monday night.