The United Actions for Democracy and Society Against Illegal Demolition & Forced Eviction have petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to investigate the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa on the allegation of spending N17b on the assembly gate.

In a joint press conference held in Lagos, the groups demanded that all the previous allegations against the speaker must be investigated and the outcome made public.

A few days ago, a group, Lagos State Anti-Corruption Coalition, accused the assembly of spending the amount to construct a gate. It sought an investigation of the claim, but the Speaker has since denied the allegations, calling it spurious and funny.

The Secretary of Society Against Illegal Demolition & Forced Eviction, Opeyemi Ogunlami, who spoke for the two groups, said the irritating impunities going on in Lagos State government is not only disheartening but alarming, noting that active citizens and revolutionaries must start beaming their searchlights into the heinous crimes going on with those supposedly elected leaders of the people.

?They are not only rulers but ruiners whose only interest is to grab power and primitive wealth while the people perish in serious pains, hardships, and poverty. This is the prelude to our disgust about the fact that the Speaker is being shielded over a fresh allegations that he used N15b to rebuild a gate that is not actually worth more than N15m.

?This is unambiguously unacceptable, given the mass poverty that is in Nigeria as a country today, and one that has shamelessly put Lagos top of the chart of cities with the largest poverty and insecurity. While other cities are competing for the best, Lagos is going far backwards with all sorts of anti-developmental bad strides,? he said.

Ogunlami expressed regret that with so many allegations and facts against Obasa so far, he is still the head of parliament in Lagos.

?What a house of impunity led by the examples of office abuses, heavy misappropriations and the over-ambitious undermining of landslide growth for Lagos; a very promising and popular city globally?

?We can refer to many documents of petitions written to the EFCC already over the several corruptive tendencies and acts of Speaker Obasa and his cohorts. As a stout opponent of Local Council autonomy, it is on good authority that the Agege Local Council Chair, Ganiyu Egunjobi is allegedly transferring Agege?s valuable lands and properties to Speaker Obasa as a gift for being his godfather.?

The groups stressed that there have been persistent allegations of fraudulent activities surrounding the handling of Constituency Intervention Funds and Constituency Project Funds by Obasa and other Principal officials, including the Clerk of the Lagos State House of Assembly, noting that Nigerians deserve clarity and accountability regarding how these funds are being utilised.

They therefore demanded that the Speaker should step aside pending the outcome of the investigation; ?His previous relationship with EFCC must not obstruct objectivity and justice. EFCC Chair Olukoyede should never be seen protecting or defending any public official away from public scrutiny! All the previous allegations must also be investigated and the outcome made public.

?We call on governors, and all other state officials both in Lagos and nationwide to start showing serious respect for the independence of the Local Council, as this is the road of collective growth from below and the closest attempts to bringing governance nearer to the people.? (The Guardian)

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