Gbajabiamila made the revelation in a video that surfaced online on Thursday, where he recounted how President Tinubu summoned him to Abuja at the peak of the Assembly crisis.

According to him, the President questioned him over reports allegedly connecting Desmond Elliot, who represents Surulere Constituency I in the Lagos Assembly, to moves aimed at destabilising the legislature.

“I almost lost my appointment as Chief of Staff because of Desmond Elliot,” Gbajabiamila said.

He explained that Tinubu had told him during their meeting that intelligence reports identified Elliot as one of the lawmakers involved in the crisis rocking the Assembly.

“Mr. President said to me, ‘I heard Desmond is your boy, the one we handed over to you.’ I answered yes, sir. Then he said Desmond was among those creating problems in the Lagos Assembly,” he recounted.

Gbajabiamila stated that he immediately defended the lawmaker and denied knowledge of his involvement.

“I told the President that Desmond was not part of the group. I had not even discussed the issue with him and didn’t know whether he was involved,” he said.

However, he disclosed that Tinubu insisted the intelligence reports pointed otherwise and instructed him to warn Elliot.

“The President told me directly to ask him to retrace his steps if he was truly involved,” he added.

Gbajabiamila said he later contacted Elliot and passed the President’s message across to him.

“I called him and told him exactly what the President said. I warned him that if he was involved in the matter, he should withdraw immediately,” he explained.

The Chief of Staff further revealed that the Director-General of the Department of State Services later reached out to him over the same allegations.

According to him, the DSS boss informed him that his name was also being linked to the crisis because of his relationship with Elliot.

“He told me my name was being mentioned everywhere and that people believed I was backing Desmond in the Assembly crisis,” Gbajabiamila said.

He maintained that he again contacted Elliot to seek clarification and urged him to publicly clear his name, but claimed the lawmaker had yet to issue any statement.

The political crisis in the Lagos State House of Assembly began on January 13, 2025, after lawmakers impeached Speaker Mudashiru Obasa while he was reportedly away in the United States.

The lawmakers accused Obasa of misconduct, abuse of office, poor leadership style, lateness to legislative sittings and alleged financial irregularities.

Following his removal, Deputy Speaker Mojisola Meranda was elected as the new Speaker, making history as the first woman to occupy the position in Lagos State.

Obasa, however, rejected the impeachment and described the process as unconstitutional, insisting that proper procedures were ignored.

The crisis later escalated with legal battles, political tension and interventions from APC leaders as well as President Tinubu.

The matter was eventually resolved after Meranda stepped down, allowing Obasa to return as Speaker.

As of the time Naija Street Matters filed this report, Desmond Elliot had not publicly reacted to the allegations, while his alleged role in the crisis could not be independently confirmed.