Sanwo-olu: Why President Tinubu Was Angry

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President Tinubu Was Upset With Governor Sanwo-Olu Over alleged Illegal Land Allocations In Lagos Posh Neighbourhood, Banana Island.

President Bola Tinubu has reportedly expressed deep displeasure with Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu over the alleged illegal allocation of 96 hectares of land at Banana Island to developers linked to them.

Sources say the dispute has triggered political manoeuvring and tense negotiations within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos.

According to insiders familiar with the matter, Governor Sanwo-Olu allegedly sold land belonging to Tinubu at Banana Island, exacerbating the President’s anger over the matter.

This brewing controversy is said to be behind Tinubu’s recent decision to reverse the removal of Lagos Speaker Mudashiru Obasa, who had been facing pressure from powerful state-level factions.

According to BK NEWS, “Tinubu got upset with Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu over illegal land allocation at Banana Island, where they allocated 96 hectares to developers linked to them. Sanwo-Olu, they reported, also sold Tinubu’s land at Banana Island,” one of the sources said. “It was the reason he reversed the removal of Speaker, Mudashiru Obasa.”

Obasa was impeached as Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly on January 13, 2025, following allegations of misconduct and financial impropriety. His removal was reportedly driven by long-standing tensions within the assembly and his defiance of party elders’ advice. While Obasa was away, lawmakers replaced him with Mojisola Meranda, making her the first female Speaker of the Lagos Assembly.

However, Obasa’s impeachment sparked a political crisis, as he was considered a key ally of President Tinubu. Tinubu, who has long maintained influence over Lagos politics, was reportedly angered by the decision and intervened to reverse it. He directed lawmakers to reinstate Obasa, arguing that the political fallout from his removal outweighed the misconduct allegations. After 49 days, Obasa was reinstated as Speaker, while Meranda returned to her previous role as Deputy Speaker.

Tinubu’s Frosty Relations with Sanwo-Olu

On Sunday, June 8, President Tinubu and his wife, Remi, met privately with Speaker Obasa. However, when it came to Governor Sanwo-Olu, the President insisted on meeting him only in the presence of a group of Lagos Governance Advisory Council (GAC) leaders, led by their chairman, Alhaji Tajudeen Olusi, who came to plead on his behalf.

“So while Tinubu and his wife met with the Speaker personally, he only agreed to meet Sanwo-Olu with a group of Lagos GAC leaders who came to plead on his behalf,” a source said.

It was gathered that Sanwo-Olu’s visit to the President on Sunday came after interventions by several influential figures. At a recent event in Lagos, video footage captured President Tinubu pointedly snubbing Sanwo-Olu, reinforcing rumours of a longstanding rift.

Speaking after the meeting, Sanwo-Olu thanked the President for granting them an audience. He, however, denied reports of a feud between them, attributing the rumours to what he described as “people who are more Catholic than the Pope.

When a reporter asked him about the rift with the President, Sanwo-Olu asked, “Did you see any discord? Can’t you see, even you are smiling and I am smiling? There is none.

“You know, there are people who believe they are more Catholic than the Pope. You know, there are things that, you see people, you know, they cry more than the bereaved.

“You know, father and son, are things that we’ll always ensure that, you know… there’s nothing at all. He’s my father, he’s my leader, and we are grateful that he’s given us the audience today to come in and say hello to him.”