A mild drama unfolded on Friday at the Lagos State High Court, Ikeja, as two lawyers laid claim to representing the Lagos State House of Assembly in a suit filed by former Speaker, Mudashiru Obasa, challenging his removal from office.
Obasa, in suit number ID/9047GCM/2025 before Justice Yetunde Pinheiro, is contesting the constitutionality of the House’s sitting and proceedings on January 13, 2025, which allegedly led to his impeachment without proper procedures. His counsel, Chief Afolabi Fashanu, filed the case, citing constitutional violations.
The legal battle took an unexpected turn when, during the hearing, human rights lawyer Femi Falana appeared as counsel for the Lagos State House of Assembly. However, another lawyer, Abang Mkpandiok, stood up to challenge Falana’s representation, claiming that he had been newly appointed by the Assembly and had filed a motion for a change of counsel.
Mkpandiok insisted that choosing legal representation is a fundamental right and requested the court to hear his application first. He stated that his law firm, Atlantic Law Firm, had been briefed the previous night to take over the case and had already filed the necessary documents, though they had yet to be served to all parties.
Falana objected, maintaining that he remained the official counsel for the Assembly and had not been served with any application for a change of representation. Another lawyer, Tayo Oyetibo, who represented Mojosola Meranda, the new Speaker, also confirmed that he had not received the application.
Justice Pinheiro, after reviewing court records, ruled that the application for a change of counsel was not yet ready for hearing as it had not been served on all parties. The judge deferred the matter until proper procedures were followed.
Meanwhile, Olu Daramola, another lawyer in the case, informed the court of a Motion on Notice filed by 33 Lagos lawmakers seeking to be joined as co-defendants. The lawmakers, through their motion, requested the court to compel Obasa to amend his suit to include them as parties in the case.
Justice Pinheiro adjourned the hearing of all pending applications to March 7, 2025.
After the court session, Speaker Meranda addressed journalists, denying reports of her resignation and condemning Obasa’s actions, including his alleged invasion of the Assembly complex. She also disclosed that, despite being entitled to a full security detail, she had only been assigned four police officers.