The governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ogun State for the 2027 election, Senator Solomon Adeola, popularly known as Yayi, and former APC governorship aspirant, Senator Iyabo Obasanjo, have exchanged words over claims that she asked him to refund money spent on her campaign.
Adeola, who represents Ogun West in the Senate, alleged that Obasanjo left the APC for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) because he refused to refund the money she spent during her governorship campaign.
Speaking during a meeting with market leaders in Remoland, Adeola said the alleged request showed that Obasanjo viewed politics as an investment rather than an opportunity to serve the people.
According to him, he met with Obasanjo as part of efforts to unite party members after the APC primary. However, he claimed he later discovered that her interest was driven by personal gains.
Adeola questioned why he should be asked to refund campaign expenses, insisting that he never encouraged her to contest the governorship race.
He further accused her of leaving the APC after being offered benefits elsewhere, claiming that her actions showed she was more interested in accessing state resources than serving Ogun residents.
The senator also alleged that after failing to get what she wanted from him and the APC, Obasanjo turned to the PDP and its governorship candidate, Ladi Adebutu.
On the legal challenge against his emergence as APC candidate, Adeola said those opposing him would fail. He argued that politicians who defected to another party after May 10, 2026, were not qualified to contest the next election.
He also claimed that the PDP was facing internal legal battles and uncertainty over its leadership.Reacting to the allegations, Obasanjo described Adeola as dishonest and denied making any personal demand.
She explained that during discussions with Adeola, members of her political team presented three requests. These included support for a Senate seat, a refund of campaign expenses, and the inclusion of her supporters in his campaign structure.
According to her, she never personally demanded any of the requests and told Adeola that he did not have to meet all of them.
Obasanjo said Adeola failed to respond to any of the requests and stopped communicating with her until after she left the APC. She also alleged that he later tried to persuade her to remain in the party by offering her money.
She questioned why he would make such an offer if he truly considered the request for a refund insulting.
The former Ogun State Commissioner for Health also criticised the process that produced Adeola as the APC governorship candidate, saying it did not follow the party’s guidelines on consensus selection.
She said she was not consulted before Adeola was announced as the consensus candidate and claimed some of her supporters were prevented from attending the unveiling event.
Obasanjo joined the APC in January 2026 but resigned from the party in May, citing rejection, poor treatment and lack of respect from its leadership. She later joined the PDP and emerged as the party’s candidate for the Ogun Central Senatorial District ahead of the 2027 elections.
The disagreement between both politicians is the latest sign of growing political tensions in Ogun State as preparations for the 2027 elections gather momentum.
