When the roll call shall be made in the 9th Lagos House of Assembly in the next few weeks, 10 members’ names will be missing, for one reason or the other. Temitope Musowo writes
Lagos assembly in 2015
The 8th Lagos state House of Assembly was inaugurated in June 2015, with 32 APC lawmakers (comprising of some returning and new members) while eight other members won on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), an unprecedented number of opposition members in the Lagos assembly.
Unfortunately, in the year 2017, the assembly lost one APC lawmaker to the cold hand of death, in the person of late (Hon) Kazeem Alimi, who was until his death representing Ibeju Lekki I, and was replaced through a bye- election by Hon Noheem Adams.
The house in 2019
A peep into the 9th assembly suggest that 30 out of the 40 members of the 8th assembly lawmakers will be returning while 10 will not return, either because they lost out in the All Progressives House of Assembly primary elections or aspired for higher political offices in the National Assembly.
The 8 decampees from the PDP to APC and their political future
Eight members that got to the house on the platform of the opposition PDP later decamped to the ruling APC. Initially, seven of them first decamped while the remaining one later joined enlisted in the camp of the ruling party. The first six were Hon Akeem Bello, Amuo-Odofin ii, who was until then the minority leader, Hon Mosunmola Sangodara of Surulere ii, also the then deputy minority leader, Hon Olushola Shokunle, Oshodi-Isolo I, and the only Igbo lawmaker in the house, Hon Jude Emeka Idimogu, representing Oshodi-Isolo II.
Others were Hon Fatai Oluwa, representing Ajoromi-Ifelodun ii and his colleague, Hon Dayo Famakinwa of Ajeromi- Ifelodun I, then, Hon Victor Akande representing Ojo constituency ii also joined the APC some months later, as did Hon Dipo Olorunrinu representing Amuwo – Odofin I who joined the ruling party last month after losing the general election.
Out of these seven lawmakers, who initially crossed from the PDP to the APC, only Hon Dayo Famakinwa and Hon Akeem Bello failed to get a return ticket, despite the party promising them automatic return ticket while crossing to the ruling party. Unfortunately, Famakinwa happened to be the first out of the eight PDP lawmakers to indicate interest in joining the ruling party, no sooner he got to the house than he started speaking ill of his former party, (PDP) for not being supportive enough during their elections.
However, many have attributed his failure to secure the party’s ticket to his lack of generosity. In fact, some have alleged that among the 40 lawmakers, he appears to be less generous, an attitude that does not generate public goodwill for him.
Even then, there are insinuations that he may have banked on the APC’s promise of automatic return ticket to those of them that decamped from the PDP, and subsequently refused to “take care” of the leaders and other stakeholders in his constituency, therefore losing to a more generous candidate.
Ordinarily, one would have thought Hon Dipo Olorunrinu the only PDP lawmaker, who until recently remained in opposition, would be rewarded with automatic ticket for his loyalty to the party, but he was, however, subjected to primary election where he slugged it out with other contestants, winning narrowly with just four votes. The lawmaker in apparent revenge later decamped to the APC and adduced the ill-treatment as one of the reasons for leaving the party last week.
The I-am-tired-of-Lagos, I am going to Abuja
Out of the six APC lawmakers in the house that aspired for the National Assembly seats, only one had his aspirations of securing party’s ticket realised while the hope of the five others was dashed.
Hon Bayo Osinowo (APC-Kosofe I) a right hand man of Asiwaju and a strong member of the party clinched the party ticket for Lagos East senatorial district by defeating the incumbent, Hon Gbenga Ashafa. Osinowo is now a senator-elect.
The other five lawmakers, who failed in their ambitions to move to the House of Representatives include: Hon Segun Olulade (Epe II) and Hon Dayo Saka-Fafunmi (Ifako-Ijaiye I), Hon (Mrs) Omotayo Oduntan (Alimosho II), Hon Lanrewaju Ogunyemi (Ojo II) and Hon (Mrs) Adefunmilayo Tejuoso (Mushin I)
Initially, Hon Lanre Ogunyemi of Ojo II, who sought the party’s ticket to represent Ojo federal constituency in the House of Representatives made the list, but was later denied the ticket, after the alleged winner of the primary election and his supporters petitioned the national secretariat of the party, Ogunyemi’s name was later substituted for his.
Meanwhile, the four lawmakers who hope to return to the Lagos House of Assembly were dashed at the primary are: Hon Akeem Bello ( Amuwo-Odofin II), Hon Adedayo Famakinwa, (Ajeromi Ifelodun I), Hon Lanrewaju Adekanye (Lagos Mainland I) and Hon Sola Giwa (Lagos Island I).
Female underrepresentation in the 9th assembly
Female representation in the 9th Assembly will be poor compared to the 8th Assembly where they have four representatives. As it stands, only two out of the four female lawmakers in the 8th assembly will be returning, and they are Hon Mosunmola Sangodara (Surulere I) and Hon Mojisola Meranda (Apapa I), while Hon Tejuosho and Hon Adetayo Oduntan will not be returning. Although a new female lawmaker, who defeated Hon Dipo Olorunrinun in Amuwo-Odofin constituency I, will make female representative in the next assembly, thus bringing the number to three.
Had Hon Adefunmilayo Tejuoso won the party’s ticked she would have taken her four terms experience in Lagos assembly to the House of Representatives but she was reportedly denied the ticket because of her closeness to Dr Muiz Banire, a factional leader within the party in the state.
In the same vein, Hon Oduntan was also found guilty by association after having been sighted at the venue of the parallel party congress where Fouad Oki emerged as the factional chairman of the Lagos APC, during the last state congress of the party, this eventually became Oduntan’s greatest undoing.
While some lawmakers were coming for a second, third and fourth term, only the speaker of the house, Mudashiru Obasa, who is now the most ranking member, will be returning for the fifth term.
Other lawmakers who will not return and why
Hon Sola Giwa representing Lagos Island constituency II, according to his constituents, was said to be fond of boasting about how much he bought his slippers, his shirt, how he bought his wrist watch for thousands of dollars. He is known for always flaunting his material possessions before the constituents without giving them anything, so, they insisted he would not come back.
Hon Akeem Bello, who is still in court to regain his ticket, was said to have been robbed of the party’s ticked by Senator Musiliu Obanikoro as a pay-back for turning his back at Obanikoro when he made him the minority leader when they were still together in the PDP. Unfortunately for Bello, Obanikoro is now a deciding factor in Amuwo-Odofin where Bello represents.
Hon Segun Olulade became a victim of power play because of his closeness to Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, a rejected candidate of his party. So, despite Olulade’s popularity among his people in Epe, he was denied the party’s ticked as a punishment for his loyalty to Ambode against the party’s position, though he later re-traced his steps to align with the party but it was too late.
However, a lot of the returning members owe their victory to the magnanimity of the speaker of the house, Mudashiru Ajayi Obasa, whose fate of ‘’speaking again’’ is also hanging on the loyalty of these lawmakers.
It remained to be seen if they are going to reciprocate his kind gesture by supporting his re-election bid as the speaker of the 9th assemble.
