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In a statement issued on Sunday, Akilo described Obasanjo’s recent comments during a radio interview as “misplaced and unfortunate,” adding that they were politically hollow and lacking in substance.
He said it was ironic that a politician who had largely stayed away from Nigeria’s partisan frontline since her unsuccessful re-election bid for the Ogun Central Senatorial District in 2011 would now seek to lecture others on political consistency and democratic growth.
“For over a decade, Ogun Central has moved on. The political structure has evolved. New leaders have emerged. The grassroots she claims to understand have continued their journey without her visible participation or institutional footprint,” Akilo said.
“To therefore describe Senator Adeola—popularly known as Yayi—as an ‘opportunist’ is a convenient narrative, but it collapses under scrutiny”, he added.
Akilo maintained that Adeola’s political trajectory had been marked by steady growth and sustained electoral validation rather than disappearance.
“From the Lagos State House of Assembly to the House of Representatives, two terms in the Senate representing Lagos West, and now representing Ogun West in the Senate, Senator Adeola’s career reflects continuity, voter confidence, and strategic political expansion —not opportunism,” he said.
Describing politics as dynamic, Akilo noted that political migration was not alien to democratic systems, citing examples from established democracies where politicians had built influence beyond their initial geographical strongholds.
“What matters is legitimacy through the ballot—and Senator Adeola has consistently earned that legitimacy,” he added.
He further argued that portraying Adeola’s transition from Lagos to Ogun as “political shopping” ignored what he described as a fundamental truth.
“Ogun is not foreign territory to him. It is his ancestral home. His connection to Yewaland predates the recent electoral cycle. The 2023 mandate he secured in Ogun West was not handed to him on a platter; it was hard-fought and democratically won,” Akilo said.
“More importantly, credibility is not measured by rhetoric on radio programmes; it is measured by sustained engagement, presence and impact.”
He alleged that branding a politician with what he called a consistent and rising career as an opportunist appeared to be a calculated attempt to regain relevance.
“When a politician who has been largely absent from Ogun’s evolving political architecture resurfaces primarily to attack a sitting senator, observers are entitled to question the motive. Is this about democratic reform — or about reclaiming political limelight?” he queried.
“If opportunism is to be defined, it should include leveraging another’s rising profile to stage a personal comeback narrative.
“Senator Adeola’s record speaks through electoral victories across two states and sustained legislative service. That is not opportunism; that is adaptability, strategy, and political durability.”
Recall that Obasanjo recently completed her e-registration as a member of the APC in Ibogun, Ward 11, Ifo Local Government Area, and has declared her intention to contest the 2027 governorship election in Ogun State.
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