By Kolawole Ojebisi
The ousted speaker of the Lagos State House Of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa, has dismissed the reports making the rounds that operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) found a stockpile of firearms in his office.
The reports alleged that pump-action rifles were discovered in the former speaker’s office during a routine “sweeping exercise,” adding that live cartridges were also found.
Reacting to the reports, Obasa said the allegation is the handiwork of his traducers, who are planning to tarnish his reputation.
In a statement he personally signed on Wednesday, Obasa said his office was broken into while he was away outside the country, noting that the new speaker has been occupying the office.
The former speaker said the alleged discovery of the arms was a mere “afterthought” by his traducers after they had “sensed the futility of their illegal actions”.
Obasa said the allegation is devoid of logic, like the discovery of “planted camera at the Lekki Toll Gate, weeks after the End SARS protest brouhaha”.
“Apart from not finding anything incriminating in my office at that point in time, Hon. Meranda, before and upon resumption into my office, brought in her prayer warriors and other spiritual people to pray and cleanse the office,” the statement reads.
“For a month now, she has been conducting her contentious affairs without raising any eyebrows from the Speaker’s office.
“I consider their purported sudden discovery of “cache of arms ammunition” in the speaker’s office as nothing but an afterthought, having sensed the futility of their illegal actions.
“Now, their phantom evil story making the rounds is devoid of any logic and dead on arrival like the discovered planted camera at the Lekki Toll Gate, weeks after the End SARS protest brouhaha.
“It is necessary to also state that my traducers have relentlessly told unverifiable lies against my person in recent months.
“Their unsubstantiated, bogus claims are legendary, from lying that I constructed a gate with N16 billion to buying a unit of Toyota Hilux truck for N40 billion, amongst other unreasonable accusations.
“Yet, they unabatedly keep sniffing around for non-existent facts to blackmail me. I have evidence, audio and digital, of these vain traducers of mine accosting my aides on corridors and assembly car parks, seeking to extract information with which to incriminate me.
“This routine shameless pattern of theirs is not going to save them from justice. The dutiful Department of State Service involvement, again at their voluntary invitation, will definitely unravel those behind my incessant blackmail since their sponsored story claimed their ‘discovery’ has been reported for immediate action.
“What is next in their armory of blackmail? Is it to accuse me of harassment, rape, stealing, or murder?
“I do not know what other blackmail and mischief my traducers may further be planning, but all right-thinking members of the public should know that their story is nothing but lies from the pit of hell.”
On January 13, Obasa was removed as speaker of the house of assembly while outside the country, and Mojisola Meranda was elected as the new speaker.
On his return, Obasa refused to accept his removal, insisting that due process was not followed and declaring himself the legitimate speaker of the house.
Recently, there were speculations that Meranda might resign as the speaker, but the Lagos assembly passed a vote of confidence on her leadership.
