The reinstated Clerk of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Olalekan Onafeko, has threatened a contempt suit against the acting Clerk of the House, Ottun Babatunde.
The development followed the drama that occurred at the Assembly complex on Wednesday when Onafeko was barred from entering the Clerk’s Office.
Onafeko was suspended by the House on January 13, the same day Mudashiru Obasa was removed by 36 of the 40 lawmakers sitting on the fateful day.
Deputy Speaker to Obasa, Mojisola Meranda, was made the new Speaker by the lawmakers, a development that marked the beginning of a crisis at the House.
Like Obasa, Onafeko had approached an industrial court to challenge his suspension.
On February 20, the National Industrial Court sitting in Lagos sacked the acting clerk, Babatunde, who was appointed by Meranda. The court ordered the reinstatement of Onafeko.
The order followed an ex parte application to the court made by Onafeko through his counsel, Yusuf Nurudeen, in a case he filed against the Lagos State Government, Lagos State Civil Service Commission, Lagos State House of Assembly Service Commission, the Speaker, Lagos State House of Assembly, Attorney-General of Lagos State and Babatunde.
The claimant in the suit marked: NICN/LA/23/2025, sought an interim injunction restraining the six defendants from parading any individual including Babatunde as the clerk pending the hearing of the motion on notice for interlocutory injunction already filed in the suit.
Granting the application, Justice M. N. Esowe, in an ex parte order directed that Babatunde should cease to parade himself as Clerk.
“That both parties shall maintain the peace and status quo ante bellum until the motion on notice is heard and determined,” Esowe ordered.
On Wednesday, Onafeko arrived at the Assembly complex around 9 a.m., accompanied by his lawyer, security personnel, and individuals said to be operatives of the Department of State Services.
According to an eyewitness, Onafeko was advised by assembly officials to leave the premises peacefully as the matter was already before the court.
In an interview with The PUNCH on Wednesday, the embattled clerk said he was humiliated at the assembly complex when he was barred from entry into the clerk’s office.
“I was barred and they prevented me from entering the office. Now we are having barricades, where people are subjected to humiliation before they can even enter the complex. I don’t know what they are turning the institution into. I have right to enter that place. I’m here to execute the court’s judgment.
“We are in a democracy and they are elected representatives of the people. So they can’t even make claims of being dictators. Because dictatorship is not within their authority. And what they are doing shows that they are on the wrong side of the law. And particularly now involving civil servants in political matters.
“That is the height of indecisiveness. But all these will also be addressed, and I know that by tomorrow, it will become clearer by God’s grace.”
He said even though the security men at the assembly were polite to him, they claimed to have directives from the management.
“So I had to come down from my car and walk in. But at the office, I think it’s quite unfortunate that so-called legal officers were not even able to help the law. They were the ones that were being used to truncate, and to undermine the authority of the judicial system,” he added.
“Appropriate action will be taken going forward. I know that the truth will prevail at the end of the day.
“We are considering all options. If you disobey the law, you will be ruled out. Because it’s contempt on its own. So, we can approach the court and see how we go from there. I’m not the judge. So, we can only lay out our complaints and let them take it off from there. But whoever is preventing the implementation of the other court, It’s also the contempt.”
While speaking, Onafeko’s lawyer, Nurudeen, said when he and his client made their way into the assembly, they were well-received, “but we saw that the office (of the clerk) was under lock and key.”
“But we promised that we were coming back because any attempt to resist us again, we will now commence the proper contempt proceedings against whoever is found wanting. We had the same resistance when we came to file the order on them, we had to use the intervention of the police before they received copies of orders the court made.”
He added, “We came with our own camera so that everything that happened can be captured. So, nobody would resist our plea.
“That office was under lock and key. And we met the secretary, who refused to be named, and who said she was not instructed to open the office.”
Meanwhile, following the drama at the assembly on Wednesday, counsel to the state Assembly, Meranda and the acting Clerk accused, Onafeko, and his team of violence and breach of peace at the assembly.
In a letter written to Onafeko’s lawyers titled ‘Breach of Peace by the Claimant-, obtained by our correspondent, the assembly’s counsel, O.O. Oniyire, SAN, stated that their chambers had not been served the motion on notice for interlocutory injunction on their clients which they had requested.
He added, “Regrettably, your client – the Claimant who is himself a lawyer, accompanied with his lawyers from your chambers, numerous DSS operatives, video cameramen and thugs today (Wednesday), 26/2/2025, stormed the premises of the three defendants violently disturbing the peace and quiet of the Lagos State House of Assembly, its staff members from carrying on their lawful duties and seeking to take over the office of the 7th Defendant despite the pendency in court of the above-referred action.”
“Also, your chambers on behalf of your client wrote the DSS for its intervention in the action that is already pending in court. Specifically, your client has requested the DSS for support to him to enforce a purported order of the court and to assume office on Monday, 24/2/2025.”
They also accused Onafeko of resorting to social media to circulate false, misleading and inaccurate information about the proceedings and order of court made by the National Industrial Court Lagos on 20/2/2025 by Justice M.N. Esowe.
“The above actions/steps taken by your client in the preceding paragraphs of this letter is a clear indication of a callous resort to self-help which has been deprecated by our courts on several occasions.
“The actions so far taken by you and your clients are simply contumacious of the court and amount to illegality, being an abuse of the process of the court. We hope you and your clients will be much guided!”
However, Onafeko’s lawyer denied claims of Babatunde not being served the notice of the court order.
A document sighted by The PUNCH showed that the Office of the Clerk received the notice of the court order as the document bears the stamp of the office dated February 21, the second day the order reinstating Onafeko was made.
PUNCH
