Interview
She hasn’t overcome the traumatic experience she had in the hands of kidnappers who held her hostage for seven days. Iyabo Anisulowo was an erstwhile secretary to the defunct Egbado South Local Government Area of Ogun state; a two-time Ogun State Commissioner for Agriculture and Forestry, a Minister of State for Education, and a Senator, who represented Ogun West district (Yewa/Awori). In this interview with Femi Ogbonnikan, she speaks about her harrowing experience in the hands of the kidnappers, how she joined forces with Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN)
Tell us about your background.
They call me Anike. I hail from Arulogun and Are-Ogun families in Ilaro, paternally. I was born in Lagos, precisely at 179, Igbosere Road, Lagos Island on the 21st of March 1951. I grew up in that area of Igbosere Road. When I was about six years old, I went to a preparatory school, St. Mary Nursery and Primary School, for about a year. Then, I went to Primary School at the age of seven at St Mary Covent School, which was on Broad Street, Lagos Island. So, I finished my primary education, which was Standard Six as it was then. We spent eight years in primary school. I finished Standard Six in 1964 and proceeded to Egbado College, Ilaro, and I was there for five years. I left there for the University of Lagos, College of Education and did NCE in Physics and Mathematics. Then, I got married. I later went to Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, where I read Mathematics and Mathematics Education. My father of blessed memory, when I was born, was working in UAC. He was sub accountant. He was previously in the military, and in the police.
But when I was born, he was in the UAC, precisely with the Niger Motors on Marina Street, not too far away from our house. It was a walking distance from Igbosere Road to Marina Street at that time. My father, David Olatunji Adekunjo Ajibogun, of the Ajibogun dynasty in Are Ogun compound in Ilaro, was a teacher after he finished at Christ Church School here in Ilaro. He taught in many villages around here.
Then, the practice was after Standard Six, they became teachers in primary schools. He lived in Lagos all his life. He left all the beautiful farmlands, the natural resources that are (Ilaro) here and we were in Lagos for the good life. But the good thing was that he encouraged me to come to Ilaro, despite the myth about Ilaro or any other local area. They said witches and wizards killed people there; that they were so many traditionalists who believed in charms, and all these were rife at that time.
When I came to Egbado College, Ilaro, in 1965, I found love and in fact, many times, I look at myself and would ask myself, “why am I here? Why am I living here? Why do I like to be in Ilaro to develop this area? Why am I craving for sustainable development of the entire areas here? Why am I so instrumental to the development of so many things here? I found out that, because at a very tender age, I found love here, not love in terms of having a manfriend or a boyfriend. My husband is an Ekiti man and I never had a boyfriend in Egbado College, because Ilaro is one place where we are all related.
Throughout Ilaro, we are all related because we have three main Igas (quarters). We have the Ona Otun; we have Ona Ola and the third is the Ilu Ata. These are the major quarters. If you are from any of these quarters, we are all related in one way or another. The farthest relationship you will find is by marriage. But by blood, almost all of us, the core Ilaro people, are related by blood. They will trace it and they will ask you whom you want to marry. So, I found love. The first kind of love was when I got to Egbado College, my late aunt, Chief (Mrs) Bede Olipede, was the owner of the Iberu Oluwa Hostel in front of Egbado College in Ilaro. She was a seamstress. She was the one that sew all the female school uniforms. So, she came to take measurement and I stood in front of her and because she was educated, she would first of all ask your name. And when I said I was Iyabo Ajibogun. She screamed and threw down the tape and her pen and hugged me; “Eh, omo buroda mi (my brother’s daughter). She was just talking for almost ten minutes that “eh, we thank God. Egbon mi ni ki o wa si Egbado College. Ah, iyen ma da o” (So, my brother asked you to come to Egbado College and school; that is good). I got two pairs of school uniform instead of a pair. Anytime we had open day, we would trek to Ilaro town through this Ibeshe/Ilaro road, which was not constructed at the time.
I was born into Aladura Church. At about five years old, I knew how to pray. At about six, I was in the choir. I could fast. I could pray and those had helped me a lot to deter forces of darkness from unleashing their terror on me.
As of that time, money was really, really scarce. I remembered I paid 19 pounds and 10 shillings for a term. Another thing happened that made me to feel committed to this area. My father paid my school fees and it was even with a cheque at that time. But suddenly some bad things happened and my father had to get out of work from the UAC at that time, and things became very, very difficult. The first year at Egbado College, Ilaro, was paid but the second year was a bit tough and I was sent home for school fees twice. But, I got lucky as the principal sent for me one day. I went to meet him. There was a phone in Ilaro area here and it was like a crude rural telephone thing. ‘Get across to your father and tell him, that you have been given a scholarship.’ I was happy.
I didn’t do interview for the scholarship and I didn’t apply for the scholarship. Yes, I had difficulties in my second year but I never knew help could come just like that, without applying for it, without asking for it. Throughout the last part, from Form Three I paid nothing. They said, it was given to the best boy and the best girl in the school, at that time. I got it. I feel grateful to the system here that I have been doing things; that I would not withdraw. Look at this mansion I built here and if this were to be in Lekki, Lagos, it would be worth billions of naira. But because of the setting here and even if I want to sell it, how much would you get out of it? And it is open to everybody to use. So, that is my story.
At what age did you start your political career?
Actually, I started in school at the University of Lagos, College of Education. You should know that I am an activist. I always want things to be done well. And I don’t procrastinate. I am not the kind of person that just sits down. I just take my shirt and skirt, put on a cap and solicit help for a start. So, I started politicking in 1971, not the politics that we know now. It is politics of ideas, good conscience, a lot social activities, debating issues. I was a disciple of Late Prof. Ayodele Awojobi at the University of Lagos at that time. They would find me, standing on a rostrum, talking about the issues why women should not be abased. So, I ended up being the Vice President of the Education Students Association, University of Lagos College of Education and I was also the Financial Secretary of the National Union of Education Students Association (NUESA), which took me to several places. At that time, I went to Zaria for the NANS convention.
So, I started my political career then. Well, when we talk about the national politics, I could not join them early, because of my challenges, because I didn’t have a child on time. And that was what made me to go about with my husband in the North. I was in Maiduguri. I was in Jos. I had lived in Kano. I had lived in Kaduna. So, it was during those Balarabe Musa period when he wanted to be governor of Kaduna State and I took interest in politics. Baba Obafemi Awolowo gave an instruction, that we should all vote for Balarabe Musa’s party, Peoples Redemption Party (PRP). We voted for PRP. For us to be able to move to get Balarabe Musa into government House at that time was a feat. And I think, that was in 1979.
By 1982, when I came back to the South-west and I got much more interested in the national politics. So, I started going to meetings in Ikenne where I met several other people even when I came to Ilaro. Even during the time of Ibrahim Babangida two-party system (SDP and NRC) and I had a brief stint in the People’s Front of Musa Yar’Adua movement which was not registered.
It was in the SDP, that I contested to be able to go to the National Convention. And even going to any convention then, you would have to contest at home. It was only popular candidates that went to the convention, then. So, I contested and I won the election into the national convention where Kingibe emerged as the national chairman of the SDP. From there, I was appointed Secretary to the defunct Egbado South Local Government Area of Ogun State. Even before then, I had led women groups in Nigeria. And you should know that I had worked in Radio Nigeria. I started “Olobe lo loko”, because I was following my husband in all his postings. In Kaduna, I did education broadcasting and so on.
Almost a year ago, you had a raw deal in the hands of kidnappers for a week. What was your experience?
It is something that one wants to recall. It is not a good experience. It is not good at all. Like you have said, it was harrowing. It was harrowing when you were faced with people, watching you with guns and cutlasses in a very bad environment, in an environment that is not conducive for sleeping at all. So, it was a bad experience. It was not good at all. You don’t even pray for such to happen to your enemies.
Even on the day of release, I was just uncertain. I knew that they were not there, but alone, walking along the path in the bush, not knowing who else I would meet, whether I would get up, or help would not be coming quickly and it was raining seriously. It was very bad.
I don’t want to dwell much until about a year, after one year anniversary of it. Maybe, I will get out of the trauma completely. Because many times when I wake up in the night and I am going from my bedroom to bathroom, I have no other thing than to say, ‘thank you, God. Because I wake up in the middle of a forest, thick forest, a jungle, where I could not walk a distance of three metres, without meeting an obstacle, either a tree or a stump that would hurt my legs, let alone the burnt I had from the hot silencer of a motorcycle, at that time.
So, I just thank God. It was very traumatic. And in fact, death was better at that time than living in that place.
I thank God that people prayed and the government put pressure on the kidnappers and God himself heard the prayers of the saints. And I was released.
