Lagos State House of Assembly member representing Surulere Constituency 1, Desmond Elliot, has apologised to the Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila, over his conduct during the All Progressives Congress (APC) primary election in May.
In a video circulating on social media, Elliot was seen kneeling before Gbajabiamila and pleading for his forgiveness.
“I don’t have any excuse. I have nothing to say other than that I am deeply sorry, sir. In our culture, we prostrate,” Elliot said.
The apology comes months after Gbajabiamila disclosed that Elliot’s involvement in an attempt to remove Mudashiru Obasa as Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly during the 2025 leadership crisis nearly ended his political career.
Obasa was removed from office after lawmakers accused him of gross misconduct and abuse of office. His deputy at the time, Mojisola Meranda, was subsequently elected as the first female Speaker of the Lagos Assembly.
Meranda, however, resigned after 49 days in office, paving the way for Obasa’s return following intervention by President Tinubu.
Elliot later apologised to Gbajabiamila, explaining that he believed the move against Obasa had the backing of President Tinubu.
The episode reportedly strained relations between Elliot and Gbajabiamila. During the subsequent APC primary, Gbajabiamila backed Odunuga-Bakare against Elliot, who was seeking a fourth term in the Lagos Assembly.
Despite losing Gbajabiamila’s backing, Elliot went ahead with his bid but eventually lost the primary election.
He rejected the outcome, alleging that his supporters were intimidated and prevented from voting freely, and threatened to challenge the result.
