How a Newborn Named Iyabo Stole Senator Obasanjo’s Campaign Spotlight at Obafemi/Owode

For all the political conversations, handshakes, speeches and promises that usually define campaign outings, it was a tiny newborn baby who unexpectedly stole the show when Senator Iyabo Obasanjo took her grassroots campaign to Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State.

Only a few days old, the baby was brought before the former senator during the engagement by her father, Gabriel Korede Ogunsola, the Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Obafemi Owode.

Then came the coincidence that transformed an ordinary campaign encounter into an unforgettable family moment. The baby had been named Iyabo.

For Senator Obasanjo, the discovery appeared to be as delightful as it was unexpected. She warmly received the child, while the gathering erupted in excitement around the newborn.

But the moment did not end with photographs and pleasantries. The little Iyabo left the encounter with a windfall of cash and other gifts showered on her by the Senator, turning what began as a routine political engagement into an unusually personal and memorable encounter.

The baby became, for a while, the unlikely centre of attraction at a gathering that had brought together political stakeholders and residents to meet the Ogun Central Senatorial candidate and hear her message.

It was also a moment that illustrated the increasingly community-based character of Iyabo Obasanjo’s campaign, which has in recent weeks taken her beyond conventional rallies into wards, communities and meetings with different social groups across Ogun Central.

Recent engagements have included ward-level meetings in Abeokuta North as well as interactions with community development representatives and other groups.

But beneath the colourful campaign scenes, Iyabo Obasanjo says her objective is straightforward: to establish direct contact with the people and understand the issues that concern them.

In a message after the Obafemi Owode visit, she said the grassroots outreach was continuing because it provided an opportunity to listen to residents, understand their concerns and share her vision.

“Every conversation reminded me that leadership is about listening, understanding, and working together to deliver meaningful progress,” she said, adding that she remained committed to “putting the people first, promoting accountability, and building opportunities for all”.

Speaking more broadly about the campaign, the professor of epidemiology said the outreach across Ogun Central had attracted people from towns and villages who came to meet her alongside the PDP candidates for the House of Representatives and House of Assembly.

“Our outreach throughout Ogun Central has been very successful with people coming from towns and villages to meet and hear from me, our House of Representative candidates and House of Assembly candidates,” she said.

She listed Community Development Association members, religious leaders, social groups and trade organisations among those who had participated in the meetings.

“We are working together to let people know our plans for making people’s lives better,” she added.

The Obafemi Owode encounter therefore offered something different from the familiar rhythms of political campaigning.

There were no long speeches from the newborn. No political slogan. No manifesto. Just a baby, only days old, quietly resting in her mother’s/family’s arms — and carrying the same name as the politician whose campaign had brought the gathering together.

And perhaps that was why the moment resonated so strongly. In the midst of the political calculations surrounding the forthcoming January 16, 2027 National Assembly election, Baby Iyabo briefly reduced politics to something much simpler: a name, a family, a community and a memorable human encounter.

For Senator Obasanjo, however, the larger grassroots journey continues. From community meetings to ward engagements, the campaign has increasingly emphasised direct interaction with residents rather than relying solely on large rallies.

That pattern has been visible in recent engagements across Ogun Central. And in Obafemi Owode, amid the handshakes and political conversations, it was a tiny girl called Iyabo who provided the day’s most unforgettable campaign photograph.

A baby barely old enough to know her own name had, quite unintentionally, become one of the day’s biggest talking points.