Lagos State House of Assembly lawmaker Desmond Elliot has denied rebelling against his political godfather, Femi Gbajabiamila.
Gbajabiamila accused Elliot of ignoring warnings not to participate in the impeachment of Lagos Speaker Mudashiru Obasa. He said the lawmaker’s actions nearly cost him his job as Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu.
Obasa was impeached in January 2025 by a majority of lawmakers, then reinstated weeks later after Tinubu intervened.
Elliot said he signed the impeachment document because he believed it had presidential backing.
Representing Surulere Constituency I, Elliot spoke during an interview on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily, where he addressed public reaction to his role in the episode. He said he was outside Nigeria when the impeachment occurred, traveling during a legislative recess for his sister-in-law’s wedding.
“My wife and I traveled on Jan. 13, 2025. We were in recess, so it was an opportunity to attend my wife’s younger sister’s wedding,” he said.
Elliot said the impeachment came as a shock while he was in South Africa.“That was when Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Ajayi Obasa was impeached. It came as a shock because I was in South Africa,” he said, adding that he returned to Nigeria a few days later.
By the time he saw the document, he said, most lawmakers had already signed, which influenced his decision.“And then I saw that almost everybody had signed. And pretty much we thought it was from the presidency. In all fairness, we thought it was from the presidency,” he said.
Elliot said Tinubu later clarified that he had not authorized the impeachment and directed lawmakers to reverse it.“But 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,” he said.