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Lagos Speaker Obasa Furious As Meranda Reduces Lawmakers’ Vehicle Budget By ₦2Bn

Lagos Speaker Obasa Furious As Meranda Reduces Lawmakers’ Vehicle Budget By N2Billion, Excludes Obasa’s Wives As Beneficiaries

The leadership crisis rocking the Lagos State House of Assembly has taken a fresh turn as embattled Speaker Mudashiru Obasa and his former replacement, Mojisola Meranda, clash over the purchase of official vehicles worth N5 billion.

SaharaReporters gathered from sources within the Assembly that Obasa is furious over Meranda’s decision to procure the vehicles from a local dealer rather than following his initial plan of importing them from Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

A source close to the Assembly leadership confirmed to SaharaReporters on Tuesday that the issue stems from the purchase of 40 SUVs for lawmakers, a project initially approved by Obasa before his removal as Speaker in January.

“There is an ongoing issue at the Assembly now because of the purchase of 40 SUVs for all the members,” the source said.

“What really happened was that it was the same Obasa that approved the project; he was the one that sanctioned the purchase of these vehicles before he was suspended. Meranda only executed the project by awarding the project when she was elected.

“It was not like Meranda did this without Obasa’s approval. Obasa approved it. It was in his plans to buy the vehicles for all the lawmakers. The part played by Meranda is the execution.

“What is causing the problem is that Meranda did not follow how Obasa wanted the execution to be. Obasa wanted to give the project to someone in Dubai.

“Obasa wants to import those vehicles from Dubai. But Meranda did not do that. He executed the project and gave the project to a Nigerian-based dealer to procure those vehicles. This is what is making Obasa angry.”

The source further revealed: “Obasa had done an approval for the purchase of 35 units of Toyota Fortuner SUV and 10 units of Toyota Prado from Dubai at N7 billion. As a matter of fact, he made the approval on December 23, 2024.

“Upon his removal, Rt. Hon. Mojisola Meranda reviewed the approval and called for a bidding locally and approved the sum of N5 billion for 32 units of 2025 Toyota Prado SUV and 7 units of Toyota Land Cruiser 2025, saving N2 billion for the House.”

Following his controversial reinstatement as Speaker—reportedly orchestrated by President Bola Tinubu and top APC figures—Obasa is now demanding that all 40 SUVs procured by Meranda be returned.

The Lagos Assembly has been embroiled in a protracted leadership crisis since January, when Obasa was impeached for fraud and gross misconduct.

His removal was short-lived, as Meranda’s tenure lasted just 49 days before she was forced to resign under pressure from the presidency and APC leadership in Lagos.

Reports indicate that before his removal, Obasa had made arrangements to distribute 45 SUVs—40 for lawmakers, one for the Clerk, and the remaining four for himself and his two wives.

However, Meranda’s swift intervention disrupted his plans entirely.

Source:- Saharareporters