Ogun 2027: I’m waiting to be sued — Marcus-Bello welcomes Yayi’s lawsuit threat over Ekiti origin claim + Video

A former Nigerian Ambassador to Zambia and Malawi, Folake Marcus-Bello, has challenged the All Progressives Congress(APC) governorship candidate in Ogun State, Senator Solomon Adeola, popularly known as Yayi, to sue her over allegations concerning his ancestry and state of origin.

Marcus-Bello, a Peoples Democratic Party chieftain, gave the reaction during a television programme monitored on Sunday.

The former diplomat claimed she had yet to receive any court notice after Adeola threatened legal action over her comments.

Adeola had previously demanded evidence for claims that he was an indigene of Ekiti State and threatened to take legal action against those making the allegations.

Reacting, Marcus-Bello insisted that the alleged inconsistencies in Adeola’s declarations amounted to perjury and challenged him to present documentary evidence of his Ogun roots.

She said: “I am a legal practitioner and I am still waiting to be sued. The truth of the matter is that the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria does not restrict anyone from moving around.

“We don’t have a problem with that. But allowing a ‘liar’ to govern Ogun will dent the respect and sterling history the state commands.”

The former ambassador alleged that Adeola’s records at The Guardian Newspapers, where he once worked, listed Ekiti as his state of origin.

She said: “The very first time he went to work at The Guardian, you know we are all news people. Your (Adeola’s) forms in Guardian says you (Adeola) are from Ekiti.

“Then, you left under very serious circumstances. There was even a panel set up in Guardian. What I am waiting for is for him to take me to court.”

Marcus-Bello also alleged that Adeola’s claimed state of origin changed from Ekiti to Lagos before he later emerged in Ogun politics.

“What does he take Ogun State for? In Alimosho, you went to the Lagos State House of Assembly; from there, you went to the Senate through Lagos; then, you jumped on Ogun State. So, now, it is Ekiti, Lagos, Ogun,” she queried.

She argued that the governorship of Ogun State was different from a senatorial contest because it involved the leadership of the entire state.

Marcus-Bello said: “There are so many sons and daughters of Ogun State that are capable. How can you jump from Ekiti to Lagos at Alimosho and jump on Ogun State again. It is not acceptable.”

She further alleged that Adeola declared himself an Ekiti indigene in a document while working at The Guardian, describing the claim as perjury.

 “There is something about lying on oath, which is perjury. The first time you (Adeola) raised your hand, you signed a form where you went to work to say I am from Ekiti; the next time you went and said I am from Lagos State; the next time you surfaced in Ogun State. Look, it is pure perjury,” she insisted.

Marcus-Bello also questioned claims concerning Adeola’s family background and said she wanted the matter investigated.

“He (Adeola) said that his father’s grave is now in Sunmola Street in Shomolu. I am an Ijebu woman. Ijebus own Shomolu. So, we will investigate that. You know in Lagos, you can hire a husband, you can hire a wife, you can hire mother-in-law.

“There is nothing you can’t hire in Lagos, so, we need to check if that grave has been hired and we will go to the bottom of this with him.

“We will go to court and ask the court to exhume whoever is in that grave. Next, one old woman came and said ‘I am the step mother’.

“She was rented! If she was not rented, she said ‘I am the second wife of Olamilekan’s father.’ Where are the other siblings? Is he an only child? And another thing is that if we want to start this fight, we will use technology,” she said.

She added: “We have read now that if you sleep with a man, the DNA stays with you for life. Look at the condition of that woman, does she look like someone related to a billionaire?”

Marcus-Bello said the courts should ultimately determine the disputed claims, while maintaining that she was prepared to defend her position.

She said: “The Constitution is clear on this note. It even gives you certain conditions, whereby if you are from Anambra and you’re claiming Lagos, there are conditions which you just have to fulfill. There is a certain number of years prescribed for you to have lived there.

“That’s another perjury because he (Adeola) hasn’t lived there for that long. They said the court is a place where common people are sorted out. All I want is to go to court or we sit down across you (TV anchor) like this and discuss it.”

The former ambassador also alleged financial impropriety against Adeola, particularly concerning funds allegedly handled during his time as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriation.

Marcus-Bello said: “There are so many documents to show financial impropriety especially at Senate level. Almajiri funds for the poor children of Nigeria ended up in Ogun State. So many other funds.. funds in Anambra ended up in Ogun State because you’re Chairman of Appropriation.”

She also questioned the source of Adeola’s wealth, alleging that he had no identifiable business or investment interests corresponding with the money he allegedly distributed.

She said: “You (Adeola) give out millions of naira on a daily basis, we are still going to ask you for your source of income. That is coming. There is no factory, there is no consultancy, there is no investment but you share millions around.”

Marcus-Bello said she was speaking because of what she described as her concern for justice and the future of Ogun State, adding that she did not want future generations to question the silence of political leaders over the matter.