Lagos assembly operating like private firm, ignoring due process — Bode George

• George insisted that anyone accused of misconduct should first clear their name before being considered for reinstatement in a democratic institution.
• He questioned why Obasa was reinstated without addressing allegations of financial misconduct that initially led to his removal from office.

A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bode George, has criticised the Lagos state house of assembly for reinstating Mudashiru Obasa as speaker.

Obasa, was initially removed by a majority of lawmakers over alleged financial misconduct but was later reinstated, which George called a “disregard for due process.”

During an interview with The Tribune on Saturday, George accused the assembly of acting like a “private enterprise” instead of a legislative body committed to democracy.

He questioned why Obasa was reinstated without first addressing the allegations that led to his removal, arguing that such actions undermine democratic principles.

“If they are deceiving themselves, they cannot deceive the general public,” George said.

“If you are the leader of a party and the party was going to go through a procedure, and they accused the speaker of a lot of inappropriate activities – financial and otherwise – shouldn’t you even address those issues?”

“Since he didn’t do it, there is no need for Obasa to respond to the allegations levelled against him. The same people came back and reinstated or re-elected him. It is an indecent approach to what democracy is all about.”

“If you were accused of certain misdemeanor openly and people went through a process by which they said enough of you, if you want to come back, you know you will have to defend yourself first. It’s already in the public domain, but there was an order that he should be reinstated since it is a private enterprise.”

“Do you return people like that in a democratic dispensation to override whatever others had been saying? Is it that those Assembly members didn’t know what they had been talking about before they removed Obasa, or they are absolutely acting like a military organisation?”

The PDP chieftain also alleged that a single individual appeared to have control over the assembly’s decisions and operations.

“You can see who is in charge. It’s a private enterprise, he can hire and fire. Is that democracy? You can’t have your opinion to explain yourself based on the demands from your constituency,” George added.