THIS DAWN — Former President Olusegun Obasanjo and former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, have engaged in a sharp public exchange following Obasanjo’s attendance at Fayose’s recent birthday celebration.
The development became public on Monday after Obasanjo’s Special Assistant on Media, Kehinde Akinyemi, released the contents of a strongly worded message sent by Fayose to the former president.
In the message, described as a “thank you” note but laden with harsh rebukes, Fayose expressed appreciation for Obasanjo’s presence at his birthday event while criticising what he called the former president’s “very irresponsible comments.”
Fayose said Obasanjo’s remarks at the event were unbecoming of his age and status.
He added that he was not surprised because “someone once said you are supposed to be kept away in the zoo.”
Fayose further stated that he refrained from responding publicly at the event to avoid creating a scene.
In his words, his silence was meant to “let the world know the difference between a sane and a mad man.”
He accused Obasanjo of losing his sanity and suffering from “a heightened stage of dementia,” and vowed to “set the records straight” at a later time.
Turbulent relationship
The former governor also asked Obasanjo to return money he claimed to have given him in the past.
He referenced the former president’s public admission that industrialist Aliko Dangote had intervened regarding the funds.
Obasanjo, in a terse reply also released by his media aide, thanked Fayose for the message, saying it revealed “who and what you are, unchanged and unchangeable.”
He confirmed that the money mentioned by Fayose had already been returned “through Foluso Adeagbo who brought it”.
The former president added that it was sent back in the same unopened bag.
The exchange adds a new chapter to the long and often turbulent relationship between the two political figures, who have alternated between alliance and open confrontation over the years.
The correspondence was released in Abeokuta on November 17, 2025, by Obasanjo’s media aide, Kehinde Akinyemi.
