Like a bolt from the blue, Senator Iyabo Obasanjo recently returned to the political scene in Ogun State after a long absence to announce her interest in the governor’s seat. The shock that greeted her return was aggravated by her desire to run for the said seat on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) where Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, popularly known as Yayi, was more or less the anointed candidate.
The daughter of former President Olusegun Obasanjo was said to have rebuffed all efforts by some party leaders to persuade her to go for the senatorial seat, insisting that she would settle for nothing less than governor. The reality, however, dawned on her as Yayi emerged the governorship candidate via a high-level consensus brokered by party leaders, followed by a landslide victory in the primary election held in May
With the dust raised by the primary election settled, Yayi, magnanimous in victory, approached Senator Obasanjo and solicited her support. She promised to do just that. But her supporters thought she made a mistake. To them, she should ask to be compensated financially having spent a lot before Yayi’s endorsement and subsequent victory in the primary. Iyabo retorted that she needed nothing from Yayi.
The ex-President’s daughter and her supporters later met with Yayi. At the parley, the supporters insisted that their leader must be compensated financially.
To be sure that he heard correctly what they said, Yayi engaged Iyabo, asking her what she wanted. Anything you think is worthwhile was the answer.
The candidate was taken aback. He couldn’t understand the volte face. From ‘l want nothing’ to anything you think I deserve, shocked the APC flag bearer.
Speaking later at a meeting with the council of Iyalajes and Babalajes from Remoland at his constituency office in Ilaro, Yayi said he engaged with Obasanjo as part of his consultations after the governorship primaries and she made some unreasonable demands including the APC governorship candidate refunding the money she had spent on campaign
Obasanjo’s demand, Yayi noted, was an indication that she was in politics for personal gain rather than service to the people. “She said she joined the governorship race and failed and wanted me to refund her expenses; that I should refund her dollars and naira. Did I ask her to join the governorship race?” he wondered.
The statement moved Obasanjo, who has since picked the senatorial ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to high dudgeon. In a live programme on a Yoruba radio station Oju Abe, she said it was her supporters who wanted a refund of her campaign expenses and ruled out any possibility of reconciliation or future alignment with the APC governorship candidate.
She also denied allegations that she made any demand for money or received any from Yayi, saying it was he who requested a meeting after her decision to quit the APC, saying that the breakdown in their relationship was rooted in what she called lack of trust and integrity.
“I don’t trust Yayi again, and I can’t interact with him again,” she said, adding that the APC candidate must explain his source of wealth.