The Lagos State House of Assembly has dismissed speculations linking the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, to the ongoing crisis within the Assembly.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the House spokesperson, Olukayode Ogundipe, refuted claims that the First Lady was backing the ousted Speaker, Mudashiru Obasa.
“We categorically dissociate all members of the Lagos State House of Assembly from this false and baseless claim. The report is purely a fabrication and has no basis in truth.
“All members of the Assembly hold the First Lady in the highest regard. As a distinguished former First Lady of Lagos State and now the First Lady of Nigeria, Senator Oluremi Tinubu has made significant contributions to governance and national development.
“It is, therefore, inconceivable that any member of the Assembly would accuse her of involvement in legislative matters or seek to tarnish her reputation. We firmly state that the First Lady has no role in any internal disagreements within the House. Any attempt to link her to these issues is entirely unfounded,” the statement read.
Meanwhile, some lawmakers met with the executives of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State on Tuesday to brief them on the situation within the Assembly.
The state chairman of the APC, Cornelius Ojelabi, confirmed this in a post on X, stating that the State Working Committee received members of the Assembly for an update on the latest developments.
When contacted, the Publicity Secretary of the APC in Lagos, Seye Oladejo, said, “It was just a courtesy visit to brief the party about what’s happening at the House, nothing more than that. And whatever is going on in the House, our position remains that it has to be resolved by the House.”
The crisis in the Assembly escalated following the deployment of security operatives by the Department of State Services (DSS) to the Assembly complex on Monday. The presence of DSS officials sparked controversy, with reports suggesting they had sealed key offices within the legislative building.
Amid the turmoil, Obasa, who was removed as Speaker on January 13, 2025, has approached the court to challenge his removal.
In response to reports of the DSS involvement, a senior official of the agency, who spoke anonymously, clarified that the Assembly had requested additional security presence.
“Contrary to reports by a section of the media that Department of State Services officers stormed the Lagos State House of Assembly, sealing offices of the Speaker and his deputy, it was the Assembly that invited security agents to maintain order.
“The clerk of the Assembly wrote to us that there was a potential security threat to the Assembly and its members and requested an increase in the number of operatives there and strict access control within and outside the Assembly,” the DSS official said.
In a statement issued late Monday, the House spokesperson, Ogundipe, confirmed the DSS was invited for security reasons but denied that lawmakers requested the sealing of offices.
“We wish to categorically state that this is not the first time the House has sought security support from the DSS.
“However, it is important to emphasise that in all previous instances, the DSS operatives have been stationed at the main gate of the Assembly complex, ensuring that unauthorised persons do not gain entry.
“For the avoidance of doubt, at no point did the letter requesting security assistance instruct the DSS to invade the legislative chamber, lock and restrict access to the Speaker’s office, lock the office of the acting Clerk, and lock the Deputy Speaker’s office.
“The events of today (Monday) raise serious concerns about undue interference in legislative affairs. The sanctity of the Lagos State House of Assembly was undermined by armed DSS operatives who actively obstructed lawmakers from performing their constitutional duties,” Ogundipe said.
Meanwhile, the DSS has threatened legal action against Africa Independent Television (AIT) and Channels Television over their reports on the agency’s involvement in the crisis.
In a letter addressed to the media houses by its lawyer, Adedeji Adedipe (SAN), the DSS described the reports as false and malicious. The letter claimed the DSS was merely providing security assistance and did not unlawfully interfere in the Assembly’s affairs.
The DSS demanded an immediate retraction and a public apology to be broadcast on all platforms for three consecutive days.
“Your publication and/or broadcast has greatly injured the character of our client and tarnished and lowered its esteemed image in the eyes of the public.
“Having regard to the fact that your broadcast was false and coupled with the fact that you did not ensure balancing in your report, as enjoined by the ethics of journalism, our client has instructed us to demand the following:
“An immediate retraction of your defamatory publication and/or broadcast on all your news platforms.
“The retraction shall be accompanied by an apology which must be published at least five (5) times daily for three consecutive days on all your news channels and platforms, including all the social media handles to which your media house has its presence.
“Please note that should you fail to comply with the above demands within a period of seven days after the delivery of this letter to you, we shall, on behalf of our client, seek redress by pursuing both civil and criminal actions against your organisation as your conduct also runs contrary to the provisions of Nigeria’s Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Act of 2015, as amended in 2024, without further reference to you,” the letter read.
