Ogun 2027: Ex- Diplomat Says Yayi Not From Ogun, Challenges Him to Debate Over Origin

*APC guber candidate threatens suit

James Sowole in Abeokuta

The battle over who succeeds Governor Dapo Abiodun in 2027 has taken a new turn as former Nigerian Ambassador to Zambia and Malawi, Folake Marcus-Bello, reopened the debate on the ancestry of the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress for the 2027 election in Ogun State, Solomon Adeola, known as Yayi.

Speaking on a live television programme, the former ambassador, who was a Commissioner for Women Affairs in the state, said there was documentary evidence to prove her point.

“Senator Olamilekan is not from Yewa. He is not from Yewa. It saddens me as a mother, as a politician, as a Nigerian that people will come out and tell blatant lies because they want a particular thing,” Marcus-Bello stated emphatically.

In a swift response, the APC governorship candidate has threatened legal action against Hon. Abayomi Hunye and Ambassador Folake Marcus-Bello over alleged libelous statements concerning his origin.

Adeola, threat was contained in a statement by his Media Adviser, Kayode Odunaro.

The senator alleged that Hunye, a suspended APC member from Tube, Ipokia Local Government Area, and Marcus-Bello of the PDP, made false statements about him and his family on national television.

Marcus -Bello said the issue of state of origin was central to the 2027 contest the Yewa people deserve the governorship but must be represented by a “genuine son or daughter of the soil.”

“If what you have stated is true, Yewa has a better chance to produce a governor because they have never produced one,” she said, adding, “But give us — and I am speaking authoritatively also on behalf of Hon. Ladi Adebutu — a real son or daughter of Yewa and we will support that daughter or son of Yewa. Let us get it clear,” she said.

The former diplomat challenged Adeola to a public confrontation, saying she was in possession of documents that contradict his claim.

“Let him come and sit in front of me. We would bring the documentation that I have — the programme of events of his father’s burial in Ekiti State with his Oriki and his progeny.

“His Oriki is in his father’s burial programme. Let him come and prove otherwise, she said.

Marcus-Bello noted that Adeola’s political career began and flourished in Lagos before he “moved his ambition” to Ogun West.

According to the former Commissioner, the controversy goes beyond personal politics because indigene status matters for Ogun’s peculiar politics.

“The local politics of Ogun State is reserved for the indigenes of Ogun State. It is not an all-comers game.

“Ogun State is peculiar. We are semi-rural. We are not Lagos where people come and claim all sorts of things, she added.

Meanwhile, Adeola has challenged both Marcus Bello and Hunye to publicly present evidence supporting their allegations within 24 hours or face legal action.

“I watched in utter disbelief as these characters that I hardly know utter assertive and outrageous lies about my origin without any proof,” he said.

The senator also alleged that one of the individuals claimed on television that he was from Ekiti but could not identify the specific location when asked.

He further accused the other of making false claims about the locations of his parents’ graves in an attempt to support the alleged falsehood.

“The other one was lying about the locations of the graves of my parents as if she was part of the undertakers at the burial all in a futile effort to justify an unsustainable falsehood.

“Enough is enough. They should produce their evidence in 24 hours or be ready for my lawsuits,” Adeola said.

The senator recalled that similar allegations about his origin had previously been used as propaganda to prevent his emergence as senator representing Ogun West.

He said the alleged propaganda failed, as the people of the district voted massively for him in the 2023 National Assembly elections.

Adeola described the renewed allegations as an attempt to undermine his perceived chances in the 2027 Ogun governorship election.