Ogun Will Be First To Produce Nigeria’s Female Governor – Iyabo Obasanjo

Daughter of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Prof Iyabo Obasanjo, yesterday declared that Ogun State will be the first in Nigeria to elect a female governor if she is fielded as the flag bearer of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2027.

This is just as the Senator, who represented the Ogun Central Senatorial district between 2007 and 2011, also advocated for a legislation that will limit the time which legislators can occupy elective positions in Nigeria.

Prof Obasanjo stated these while speaking with journalists at the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL), in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital where she outlined the development-driven agenda of her gubernatorial ambition.

Iyabo, who was the Ogun State Commissioner for Health between 2003 and 2007, explained that she is better qualified to be the first elected female governor in Nigeria, given the age-long high literacy rate and rich historical record of female leadership in Egbaland, now Abeokuta.

With specific references to icons like the late Madam Tinubu and the legendary Egba women warriors, Iyabo Obasanjo said such make it the natural trailblazer for gender inclusion in governance in Ogun State today.

Against the backdrop of the agitation of the people of Ogun West Senatorial district at producing the next governor of the state, Iyabo declared that it is not the fault of Ogun Central that the people of Ogun West has not produced a governor since the creation of the state in February 3, 1976.

She recalled that his father, former President Obasanjo, alongside other leading politicians from the Ogun Central district worked towards ensuring the emergence of a Yewa-Awori governor but without success.

She however, maintained that it may be difficult for the Ogun West Senatorial District to produce a governor until there exists an agreement or consensus between East and Central to concede ground for the West to produce a governor soon.

Fielding questions from journalists, Iyabo Obasanjo, advocated for the evolution of a law that will restrain legislators in Nigeria from occupying an elective position for not more than a specific period of time, just as the Constitution has done to the executive arm of government too.

“Politics should not be a lifelong profession. Democracy was designed as a government of the people, by the people, for the people: where citizens serve and then return to private life.

‘’For example, President Bola Tinubu served as governor for eight years and then spent many years outside public office before running for president. He remained active politically, but he was not in elective office during that period. That is healthy for democracy.

“Politics should not be permanent. Citizens should be able to step in, serve, step out and return, if necessary. That keeps leadership fresh and accountable.”

Speaking about her developmental agenda for the state, Prof Obasanjo anchored her plans on industrial growth, agricultural value addition, education reform, technology advancement, tourism expansion, improved transportation and above all, job creation.