Obasanjo Finally Replies His Daughter Iyabo, Says She Was Induced To Do ‘Dirty Job’

Nearly a year after his daughter, Iyabo, wrote
a well-publicised open letter to him, former
President Olusegun Obasanjo has replied her,
alleging that she was induced by President
Goodluck Jonathan's administration to write
the stinker. In portions of his latest memoirs,
My Watch, seen in advance by TheCable,
Obasanjo said he had been warned that "this
administration" was attempting to induce
two of his daughters to do a "dirty job" and
that he warned both of them against it.
Obasanjo said Iyabo succumbed to the
advances because of "her character" and "the
influence of her mother" – who is the retired
general's first wife. In her letter, Iyabo, a
former commissioner in Ogun state and
former senator, recounted Obasanjo's failings
as a father and questioned his moral right to
criticise others. "This is the end of my
communication with you for life. I pray
Nigeria survives your continual intervention
in its affairs," she wrote.

Obasanjo had written a highly critical letter to
Jonathan titled "Before It Is Too Late" in which
he raised issues about insecurity and
corruption in the country. He wrote: "You
must hold yourself most significantly
responsible for what happens or fails to
happen in Nigeria and in any case, most
others will hold you responsible and God who
put you there will surely hold you responsible
and accountable." Obasanjo further repeated
an allegation that Jonathan was training
snipers to kill his political opponents.

He had remained silent since Iyabo's open
letter to him was published in the medai, but
has now responded in volume one of the
three-volume memoirs. Obasanjo wrote: "I
got a warning that this administration was
attempting to induce two of my daughters,
including Iyabo, to do a dirty job. I warned
them both against it, but because of her
character, the influence of her mother and her
attitude, Iyabo succumbed; the other
daughter did not. "I was warned about a
former minister of finance, who wrote the
reply for Jonathan, and about the writer of the
letter to which E. K. Clark appended his
signature. Iyabo's letter and the response to
it has been treated as a family issue, so that
all the members of the family can be
equipped with the other side of the story from
me for posterity. "If Iyabo was childish and
unwise enough to allow herself to be used, no
other member of the family should allow
himself or herself to be so used. Tolerance
and acceptance of others must be practised
in the face of any provocation, no matter how
vile." Obasanjo has previously been openly
accused of Inbreeding and adultery by his
son, Gbenga, who sought to divorce his wife
alleging that his father was sleeping with her.

The former president, meanwhile, said a
"cabal" surrounding late President Umaru
Musa Yar'Adau framed corruption charges
against Iyabo when she was a senator in
order to get back at him because of his
personal views against them. "My adversaries
tried other means to get to me," he stated. "If
Obasanjo could not be cut down to size, they
must have thought, what about those close to
him, including his daughter? When Senator
Iyabo, my daughter, was accused of
corruption, I took my time to have a serious
interview with her on what exactly had
transpired. She briefed me in detail and I was
satisfied. "But I did not stop there. I spoke
with the Senate President, who also briefed
me and assured me that Iyabo had not
committed any offence as he had personally
looked into the matter.

Posted By David Aniemeka