Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, has strongly denied allegations linking him to recent protests that erupted across Lagos State following the All Progressives Congress (APC) primary elections.
Obasa also cautioned individuals and groups against using his name to promote protests, rallies, or actions capable of creating divisions within the party, insisting that attempts to portray him as the mastermind behind the demonstrations were false and misleading.
The warning comes after party members from several local government areas, including Badagry, Mushin, Amuwo-Odofin, Eti-Osa, Somolu, Ajeromi-Ifelodun, and Oshodi-Isolo, staged a protest at the APC Secretariat on ACME Road, Ikeja, on Tuesday. The protesters accused party leaders of manipulating the outcome of the primaries and demanded greater transparency in the selection process.
The demonstration followed a series of protests that spread across the state after the Lagos APC released a list of candidates believed to have emerged victorious in the primary elections.
Amid the growing discontent, messages circulated on social media and WhatsApp alleging that Obasa had provided N2 billion to sponsor the protests.
Reacting to the claims, the Speaker dismissed the allegations as baseless and malicious.
“It is foolhardy, malicious, misleading and baseless for anybody to assume or imply that I would mobilise protesters from different local governments to the party secretariat. For what purpose?” he said.
Obasa stressed that he was not a candidate in the disputed primaries and therefore had no reason to finance demonstrations against the process.
“I am not a candidate in the election under dispute, so why and how would I commit such an amount of money to organising protests?” he queried.
The Speaker further described himself as a loyal and peace-loving member of the APC, emphasizing that he would never support activities capable of undermining party cohesion.
He reaffirmed his commitment to the unity, peace and progress of the ruling party, urging members to avoid actions that could deepen existing tensions.
“My steadfast commitment remains the unity, peace and progress of our great party and the people of Lagos State,” Obasa stated.