By Our Reporter
Former Ogun governorship aspirant and daughter of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Senator Iyabo Obasanjo, has resigned from the All Progressives Congress (APC), citing persistent disrespect, exclusion, and unfair treatment by the party leadership in Ogun State.
In a resignation letter dated May 31, 2026, and addressed to the Ogun State APC Chairman, Chief Yemi Sanusi, Prof. Obasanjo said her decision followed months of frustration and disappointment over the party’s handling of its governorship selection process.
A chieftain of the Ogun State chapter of the APC told The Daily Crucible that he had neither seen the party chairman, Chief Yemi Sanusi, nor a copy of Iyabo Obasanjo’s resignation letter, but said it was most likely true that the governorship aspirant had resigned from the party.
The US-based Associate Professor of Epidemiology, who recently contested for the APC governorship ticket in Ogun State, faulted the consensus arrangement that produced Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, popularly known as Yayi, as the party’s candidate. She argued that the process violated APC guidelines and lacked transparency.
According to her, although aspirants had agreed to support any candidate that emerged through a genuine consensus process, she was neither consulted nor carried along before Adeola was announced as the consensus choice.
She further alleged that some of her supporters were denied access to the venue where the candidate was unveiled and were intimidated during the exercise.
Despite her reservations, Obasanjo said she accepted the outcome in the interest of party unity and publicly congratulated Adeola on the night he emerged as the candidate. However, she noted that events that followed only deepened her feeling of alienation within the party.
She revealed that Senator Adeola later sought a meeting with her supporters, during which three demands were presented to him. According to her, he promised to respond within one week but failed to provide any feedback more than two months later.
“The treatment I have received since then has reflected a consistent pattern of rejection and disrespect. When disrespect is the only dish served, then one should leave the table. I am therefore leaving the APC table where I am not welcomed,” she wrote.
Despite her grievances, the former senator expressed gratitude to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Ogun APC Chairman Chief Yemi Sanusi, and the Ogun Central APC leadership under Chief Soremi for the support and courtesies extended to her during her stay in the party.
Iyabo Obasanjo returned to active politics earlier this year after formally registering as an APC member in Ward 11, Ibogun, Ifo Local Government Area of Ogun State in a manner that remained shocking to many.
Earlier, the don had told journalists that she was not interested in seeking any elective office in the state, particularly the governorship, saying she was comfortable with her role as a lecturer, which she described as another platform to serve humanity.
However, the governorship aspirant admitted that some people, having considered her pedigree and antecedents, were encouraging her to join the 2027 governorship race.
She previously served as Ogun State Commissioner for Health between 2003 and 2007 before representing Ogun Central Senatorial District in the Senate from 2007 to 2011.
After losing her re-election bid in 2011, she relocated to the United States and remained largely absent from partisan politics for over a decade. Speculation about her political comeback intensified in late 2025 when campaign billboards bearing her image surfaced across parts of Ogun State ahead of the 2027 governorship race.
She later declared her governorship ambition under the APC before eventually announcing her resignation from the ruling party.
