Gbajabiamila Discloses How Much He Was Offered To Endorse Obasanjo’s Third Term Agenda

Speaker, House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila has recounted his legislative experience and how he was instrumental in scuttling a proposed move by the Olusegun Obasanjo administration to get a third-term.

Naija News understands that Gbajabiamila was elected to the House of Representatives in 2003, and got re-elected for the same position in 2007 to represent the Surulere I constituency of Lagos State.

The lawmaker subsequently became the Speaker of the House of Representatives where he is still serving.

Telling his stories in a book titled ‘Mr. Speaker: The Legislative Life, Service and Resilience of Femi Gbajabiamila’, recently launched in Abuja to mark his 60th birthday, the lawmaker recounted that he was once offered N100 million to support the infamous third term agenda of the former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo.

In his submission, Gbajabiamila said his best moment as a lawmaker was the day the agenda died.

He said: “My best moment as a lawmaker was the death of Third Term; the day it was pronounced dead because we had sleepless nights. We were meeting; we got a place in Asokoro, hidden somewhere. We would start our meetings sometimes at 11 at night and leave at 4am. I can’t remember how many of us. It was a risk to life.

“So, the day it was pronounced dead was a happy day and a relief for me. I was a free man. Look, I was offered inducement, at that time, by one of the major proponents of Third Term. At this point, I would not mention his name, but he is a major player in this country.

“While they were offering members N50 million, I was offered double, a N100 million at that time, and you know what N100 million was, which, of course, I turned down. I say that for you to understand the pressure; financial, mental and physical pressure.

“We had no other job in the House except Third Term, a constitutional amendment. For me, as noble as that work was, the best time was the day it died, not the Third Term itself, but the day it was killed on the floor.”