Why I challenged my suspension in Court – Lagos Assembly Clerk

The reinstated Clerk of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Olalekan Onafeko, has resumed duty, stating that his return was based on a court order.

Onafeko was suspended by the House on 13 January, the same day Mudashiru Obasa was removed by 36 out of the 40 lawmakers present.

However, he challenged his indefinite suspension at the National Industrial Court (NIC), which ordered his reinstatement pending the determination of the suit he filed against the state government and others.

Addressing journalists in his office on Thursday, Onafeko stressed that he was appointed as Clerk in 2022 for a four-year term and remained eligible for reappointment under the Lagos State House of Assembly Legislative Service Commission Law.

Expressing his dismay over the suspension, he stated that he was neither given prior notice nor accused of any wrongdoing to justify such an action.

“With the court’s order reinstating me as Clerk of the House, the court has nipped the illegality and the legislative rascality of the on bud,” he said.

“By implication, the Court has ordered that I resume my duties as the Clerk of the House pending the hearing of the Motion on Notice for Interlocutory Injunction already filed in the suit. The said order has been duly served on the concerned parties.

“This is victory for the rule of law and ethos of a civil society. The Court is indeed the last hope of the common man, including the oppressed,” he added.