Iyabo Obasanjo, daughter of ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo, has confirmed her membership in the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ogun state.
Iyabo spoke on Saturday during an interactive programme on Eagle7 Sports Radio 103.7 FM, anchored by Segun Odegbami.
Explaining her return to politics, Iyabo said the decision was driven by sustained pressure from supporters.
“Like I told you, a group of people who I did not bring together, I did not form them into a group, have been working, I think, for two years now,” she said.
“And then they started talking to me about a year ago, saying, ‘Look, we think you are the best candidate. We want you back.’”
She said she could not return to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), where she previously contested elections, citing internal crises.
“I could not go back to the PDP because of all kinds of turmoil,” she said.
Iyabo disclosed that she also considered the African Democratic Congress (ADC), but said the party was not yet fully organised.
“The ADC was another option, but they don’t have their ducks in a row yet; they’re still working on it,” she said.
According to her, those who encouraged her return to politics are now members of the APC, a factor that influenced her decision after wide consultations.
“So, I think APC is my natural home. I don’t have any animosity towards any individual or any group within the APC,” she said.
“I feel more comfortable with all the actors I know within the APC… I feel more comfortable, actually, than with some of the actors I know in the PDP, and some of them are now in the ADC.
“So I think it’s my natural home. I feel quite confident and happy to have made that decision.
“I have an absolute 100% feeling it’s my natural home.”
Iyabo represented the Ogun central senatorial district between 2007 and 2011. She lost her re-election bid in 2011 to Gbenga Obadara of the then Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN).
She later relocated to the United States, where she pursued an academic career and rose to the rank of professor. She is also a former commissioner for health in Ogun.
