Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, on Thursday met with President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, barely a month after declaring he would not support the president’s re-election in 2027.
Presidential spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, shared photos of Tinubu and Makinde meeting at the State House.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in a closed door discussion with Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde at Presidential Villa, Abuja on Thursday,” Onanuga wrote.
Makinde, who is a member of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had publicly distanced himself from plans to support Tinubu’s re-election in 2027.
During a media chat at the Government House in Ibadan in December, the governor accused the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, of pledging to “hold down” the PDP for Tinubu ahead of the 2027 polls.
“Wike’s statement shocked me, and I won’t be part of such plans. President Tinubu didn’t request Wike to hold the PDP for him, it was the FCT Minister who offered to hold the party for the President,” Makinde had said.
He added, “So, Wike can support the president in 2027, but I will not.”
Meanwhile, Governor Makinde told State House correspondents after the meeting that his visit was to discuss “some governance issues” with the president.
“Well, the President is the President of Nigeria, not the President of the APC, and we’re talking about governance here,” Makinde said.
“So I came to discuss with the President some governance issues, basically.”
Asked if he was planning to join the APC, Makinde said, “No, I’m comfortable in the PDP and again, we may have issues in this country where you need a bipartisan approach where it won’t be an issue of maybe APC talking alone or PDP talking alone, where we will have to look at what is the best foot forward in the interest of our nation.
“So when you get to that junction, you need everybody on board.”
Speaking on his relationship with Tinubu after openly declaring that he would support the president’s re-election, the Oyo governor said: “…there’s nothing I’ve said in the past that suggests we are not enjoying a harmonious relationship.
“Politics is politics. We belong to different political parties, but Nigeria is a project that all Nigerians must be concerned about, particularly the welfare of our people. What are the governance issues? Issues like insecurity and poverty alleviation.
“There are matters that have no party affiliation. As leaders, whether President or Governor of a state, these are issues we must work together on, consult with one another, and ensure we can make life a little better for our people,” Makinde added.