Conceit is the finest armour a man can wear but when a woman, amid a parliament of men, dons it with the haughty radiance of a feudal lord, she incites the ceaseless tribute of interminable jeers.
Little wonder Hon. Adefunmilayo Tejuoso attracts outrage and widespread disgust over her ambition to become Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly. Having being reelected against the backdrop of deep-seated resentment against her by many of her colleagues in the Lagos State legislature, not a few pundits believe that Tejuoso would be stretching her luck by vying for Lagos State’s third most coveted seat of power.
Many more believe that of all the contestants for this vital position, Hon Tejuosho has the least chances of becoming the speaker due to certain reasons, which include her alliance with some top politicians as well as her unruly behavior which contradicts her status as state lawmaker.
Hon. Tejuosho will return to the 8th Lagos Assembly by June 2015 as a fourth term legislator, having been in the House since 2003.
The 50-year old legislator and current Chairman, House Committee on Finance, represents Mushin Constituency 1 of Lagos State in the
Assembly.
Another major factor that might hinder the realization of Hon. Tejuosho’s dream of becoming as the next Lagos Speaker is the general perception of so many of her colleagues that she is arrogant. Many of her colleagues strongly believe that the female legislator is too arrogant to be the speaker of the House.
It would be recalled that Tejuoso had been the deputy speaker of Lagos State House of Assembly but was relieved of this vital position in 2009 for gross misconduct bordering on disrespect to the legislative house and violation of house rules.
The impeachment notice had been signed by 30 members of the House and when the speaker,
Adeyemi Ikuforiji, finally put the matter to vote, 28 lawmakers voted in favour while three were against with one abstaining.
As a matter of fact, many of the then members of Lagos State House of Assembly had argued that Tejuoso could have been impeached long ago but for the intervention of personalities in the state who prevailed on members to sheath their swords.
Till date, many still allege that Hon. Tejuoso hasn’t changed for good. To them, she nurses a gigantic ego which makes her an unlikely choice for the position of the Speaker of Lagos State
House of Assembly.
Another factor that will pose great threat to her ambition her penchant for wearing scandalous dresses. Though, many of her apologists would
argue otherwise, the truth is that many a time this popular female legislator puts on dresses that cleverly and sensually expose her
cleavages.
On several occasions, Hon. Tejuosho
had become the cynosure of all eyes at major social events, not because she was the most popular at the events, but because of her revealing and scandalous outfits.
Not a few amongst her colleagues believe that anybody that will occupy such a vital position must be someone with commendable sense of morality, especially someone capable of becoming a good role model to the female folk.
Therefore, these among several factors would militate against her ambition of becoming the Speaker of Lagos State’s House of Assembly.