close
Wednesday, May 20, 2026

I was confused when I joined other lawmakers to remove Speaker Obasa: Desmond Elliot

“We thought it (Mr Obasa’s removal) was from the presidency,” Mr Elliot said.

• May 20, 2026
Desmond Elliot
Desmond Elliot and Obasa

Desmond Elliot, the Lagos lawmaker representing Surulere Constituency I, has revealed how he was allegedly confused and railroaded into joining forces to remove Mudashiru Obasa as the speaker.

“I’d like to state categorically that I wasn’t in the country during the period of January 13th, we were in recess. It was an opportunity for us to travel and attend my wife’s younger sister’s wedding. That was the time Rt. Honourable Mudashiru Obasa was impeached.

“It came to me as a shock because I was in South Africa then. So, obviously, it took me about two days to come back. I was also as confused as everybody was, and then, I saw that almost everybody had signed. Pretty much, in all fairness, we thought it was from the presidency,” Mr Elliot said in a Channels TV interview on Tuesday.

The Lagos politician added, “I appended my own signature, I believe I was maybe 30-something person at that point in time because others that had travelled and returned, had also signed. Eventually, Mr President called us and made us understand that it was not from him, and asked us to return the speaker, and we did.”

Mr Elliot’s latest comments followed his apology to the former speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila.

Mr Gbajabiamila said he was almost fired by President Bola Tinubu because of Mr Elliot’s role in the removal of Mr Obasa.

We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.

More from Peoples Gazette

farmers

Agriculture

FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology

The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices

Katsina State

Politics

Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku

“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”

Scotland and DR Congo national teams

Sport

FULL LIST: South Korea, Scotland, DR Congo, other nations unveil 26-man squad for FIFA 2026 World Cup

Ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America, the participating nations have continued to confirm their squad list for the tournament starting on June 11.

APC women

Jos

APC Primaries: Women leaders urge cancellation, re-run in Plateau

Some of the women who spoke on Wednesday in Jos, alleged that there were many irregularities.

Armed cops

States

Police raid criminal hideouts in Kwara, nab five suspected cultists

Police command in Kwara has arrested five suspected cult members following a major intelligence-driven operation by the Violent Crimes Response Unit.

Armed Cops

States

Mass Abduction of Schoolchildren: Ogun police intensify security operations

The police command in Ogun says it has intensified security operations to prevent kidnapping and other related violent crimes across the state.

Gov. Umaru Bago

States

Gov Bago cautions APC flag bearers, urges unity, reconciliation in Niger

Governor Umaru Bago has cautioned candidates for the House of Representatives and Senate not to assume they have won the main elections.

Photo used to illustrate the story

Health

Sokoto: CADI, UNFPA train district heads to tackle GBV, boost health access

CADI, in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund, has trained 87 district heads in Sokoto State on addressing harmful social norms.