Justice Yetunde Pinheiro of a Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja has fixed March 7 for hearing of all preliminary applications filed in the suit instituted by the embattled former Lagos Speaker, Mudashiru Obasa challenging his alleged unlawful removal as Lagos State House of Assembly speaker
The judge fixed the date after counsel representing parties announced their appearances and the judge said the application for an accelerated hearing would not taken as it is not ripe for hearing.
At the resumed proceedings, Mr. Tayo Oyetibo (SAN) led Bimbo Akeredolu (SAN) and other lawyers to represent the Speaker, Mojisola Meranda.
Mr. Femi Falana (SAN) led Dr Muiz Banire (SAN) and other counsels to represent 34 lawmakers, Olu Daramola (SAN) and Dada Awosika (SAN) represented other members of the house seeking to be joined in the suit.
However, there was also a mild drama in court when another counsel, Abang Mkpandiok got up to challenge Falana’s representation of the Lagos State House of Assembly
Mkpandiok said he had been briefed last night by the Assembly and filed his motion for a change of counsel in the matter this morning.
He noted that the choice of counsel is a fundamental human right and urged the court to take his application first.
Falana, in his objection, told the court that he had not been served and remained the counsel on record for the Assembly.
Oyetibo also said he had not been served with the application. Mkpandiok then served the application on the other counsel in the open court.
After looking through the court’s records, Justice Pinheiro noted that the application for change of counsel was not ripe for hearing and she granted an application of some other lawmakers seeking to be joined in the suit.
The court said, “as counsel himself has admitted, that application has not been served on all parties, I’ll defer same pending compliance with the rules of court.”
The court also held that the application for accelerated hearing would not be taken yesterday and she subsequently adjourned till hearing of all pending applications to March 7, 2025.
Obasa had in a motion on notice dated February 4, 2025 brought pursuant to Order 43 Rule 1 of the Lagos High Court Civil Procedure Rules to abridging the time within which the defendants may file their response by way of counter-affidavits/written addresses as specified by the rules of the court to 7 day after the hearing and determination of this application.
He also prayed the court to fix a date and to expedite hearing of the his originating summons, while in his origination summons is challenging his removal as Speaker of Lagos House of Assembly on January 13, 2025
In the plaintiff originating summons dated February 12, 2025, and filed by his counsel, Fashanu (SAN), Obasa claimed that he was removed from his position on January 13, 2025, by 36 lawmakers while he was out of the country.
The judge subsequently adjourned to March 7, 2025, for a hearing of all preliminary applications.
The 35 lawmakers including the Speaker of the Lagos State Assembly, Mrs Mojisola Meranda, were present in the court at an early hour of opening the court.
