The “Sins” and “Miscalculations” of Mudashiru Obasa

The principle of “Never try to outshine the master” dictates that you should not strive to outshine those in authority over you. The principle aims to provide comfort and security to your boss or other superiors.

That is one of the laws highlighted in Robert Greene’s “The 48 Laws of Power.” The rule in politics, as in business, is to always make those above you feel comfortably superior. Make them feel better and appear more brilliant than they are.

Rather than state that those who have been governors were not better than him, Rt Hon Mudashiru Obasa should have positioned himself as having the credentials to lead the state. He also chose an inauspicious occasion to proclaim his qualifications for that office.
 
That invariably was his kiss of death. It happened when Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu went to present the state budget to the House of Assembly. The House of Assembly did not treat the governor with the respect befitting his office. The Speaker kept the governor waiting for not less than three hours to arrive and commence the plenary, violating all protocols. This was a planned event and not impromptu. One of the allegations leading to his removal was his persistent tardiness, arrogance, and intimidation of members.
 
Not only did the governor have to wait for more than four hours, but the party’s leadership and all dignitaries who attended the historic event also had to wait for more than five hours without any explanation.
 
When Speaker Obasa came into the chambers, he did not extend any courtesies; rather, he presented himself as the emperor. Rather than being apologetic, the speaker delivered a diatribe. Before then, there had been a series of meetings to resolve the grey areas.
 
There was a particular meeting that involved the Governance Advisory Council (GAC), the governor, the ousted Speaker, and some other political leaders. Reports indicated that Obasa did not conduct himself well at that meeting. It was becoming obvious that Obasa accorded some respect to President Tinubu. For any discerning mind, therefore, events in the last three months showed clear signs that Obasa’s days were numbered.
 
His Sins
Obasa faces a litany of sins. The motion for his impeachment names financial infractions as one of his offences.  This included a sum of N44 billion allocated for vehicles last year.

There was also the allegation of N15.6 billion allocated for office construction, amid claims that existing facilities were functional.

Sometime in October 2020, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) interrogated Obasa for owning over 60 bank accounts.

He was also accused of awarding contracts to himself, using different fronts and spending N80 million as an allowance during the training of wives of 20 lawmakers in Dubai.

His removal came barely a month after he was accused by a group, the Lagos State Anti-Corruption Coalition, of spending N17 billion to construct a gate that leads to the Assembly complex and N200 million on a thanksgiving service.

Another allegation is that he approved N17m monthly to maintain his personal residence and guest house and N53m from the state coffers to travel with his mistress to the United States of America.

In 2023, the Assembly faced a backlash after rejecting 17 out of 39 commissioner nominees.
Obasa also got into trouble over the contentious 2024 Lagos State Local Council Administration law.

The bill sought to replace the existing 37 Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) created in 2003 with democratically elected local governments, recognizing only 20 LGAs, as outlined in the 1999 Constitution.

His Miscalculations
Speaker Obasa must have misread the political game going on in Lagos. He seems to have also forgotten that Bola Ahmed Tinubu is not just the national leader of the APC but the president and commander of the armed forces who knows how to wield the powers of his office. As a student of Tinubu, he should have known his tactics well enough that he abhors his subordinates challenging his authority.

It is believed that Tinubu had told the layers of power in Lagos that he was going to choose who would become the governor. He allegedly told his party caucus that they should go ahead with all other selections but should defer to him on the choice of governor. This gave life to the rumour that Seyi Tinubu might be the candidate.  But Seyi Tinubu is at best a placeholder. The preferred candidate is not among any of the names being touted as successors to Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
 
Not Over Until It Is Over
Everyone expects Obasa, who was in the US while his impeachment took place, to fight back. A pig’ fight is being anticipated by an insider who knows so much and could divulge so much. Therefore, the establishment is stepping up its game and throwing shade to intimidate and weaken Obasa’s resolve to fight back.

Because attack may be a better form of defence, a series of cards are being thrown up to show Obasa what may happen to him if he does not accept his fate by mellowing down. One trump card is that the Supreme Court of Nigeria found no lawyer registry data for him.

Politically, Obasa is known as a lawyer. Obasa’s profile on Wikipedia and the Lagos Assembly’s website describes him as a lawyer and solicitor of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, even though there is no mention of where he practised or a case he handled. He reportedly graduated from the Nigerian Law School in 2007, a year after he obtained a Bachelor of Law degree from Lagos State University.

Hopefully, Hon. Mudashiru Obasa has successfully passed through and graduated from the University of Hard Knocks and will be more circumspect, reticent, and politically more tactical going forward. He has only fallen from a position; he may still bounce back depending on how he humbles himself.