Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has vowed to work against President Bola Tinubu’s second-term bid in 2027, expressing regret over his support for the President during the 2023 presidential election.
Makinde said his decision to back Tinubu in 2023 had failed to achieve its intended purpose, stressing that he would not support the President again.
The governor, who spoke with journalists on Tuesday at the Government House in Ibadan, lamented that Tinubu had not lived up to his promises to fix the country.
Makinde also accused the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, of telling President Tinubu that he would “hold the PDP” for him ahead of the 2027 election.
Recall that Makinde was among the five Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governors—popularly known as the G5—who openly worked against their party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, during the 2023 polls.
The group, led by then Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike, opposed Atiku’s candidacy over zoning concerns, arguing that the PDP should have presented a southern presidential candidate following the eight-year tenure of former President Muhammadu Buhari, a northerner.
Makinde explained that his decision to support Tinubu, who was the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), was based on the belief that he would govern in the national interest.
“I said it earlier, I’m human. I supported the current president, even though he was in another party at that time, because I thought he would do what is right for the country,” Makinde said.
He added that he believed Tinubu would “reset the country” by assembling competent individuals from across Nigeria to tackle the nation’s challenges.
“But unfortunately, that is not what we’re seeing. I regret that action. Yes, I do,” the governor stated.
Citing concerns over the survival of democracy and the future of the PDP, Makinde vowed that President Tinubu would not have his support in the 2027 presidential election.
He further disclosed that his political disagreement with Wike began after the minister allegedly told President Tinubu during a meeting that he would “hold PDP” for him in 2027—a statement Makinde said was made without the consent of other party stakeholders.
“I was in a meeting with the President and Wike and a few others, and Wike said to the President that he would hold PDP for him in 2027,” Makinde said.
“So we got up, and I asked Wike, ‘Did we agree to this?’”
Makinde vowed to resist any attempt to turn Nigeria into a one-party state.
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