Governor of Oyo State and a key figure in the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, Seyi Makinde, has visited the Presidential Villa, Abuja, to meet with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Makinde arrived at the State House shortly after the Governor of Plateau State, Caleb Mutfwang, who recently defected from the PDP to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), arrived and proceeded directly to the President’s office.
As of the time of filing this report, the agenda of the meeting between President Tinubu and the Oyo State governor had not been disclosed.
Makinde was one of the five PDP governors, popularly known as the G-5, who openly opposed the emergence of Atiku Abubakar as the PDP presidential candidate ahead of the 2023 general election.
The group argued that, based on the PDP’s zoning arrangement, the presidency should have rotated to the South after the eight-year tenure of former President Muhammadu Buhari from the North.
Other members of the G-5 were Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, Samuel Ortom of Benue State, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State and Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State.
The group eventually worked against the PDP’s presidential candidate and supported Tinubu during the 2023 election.
However, cracks have since emerged between Makinde and Wike, who is now the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory.
In a recent interview, Makinde disclosed that the rift began after Wike allegedly told President Tinubu during a meeting that he would “hold PDP” for the President ahead of the 2027 election.
Makinde said the statement was made without the knowledge or consent of other stakeholders within the party.
“I was in a meeting with the President and Wike and a few others, and Wike said to the President that I will hold PDP for you against 2027,” Makinde said.
“So, we got up, and I asked Wike, did we agree to this?”
The Oyo governor stressed that while Wike was free to support Tinubu’s re-election bid, other party members also had the right to protect the PDP and resist any move that could weaken democratic pluralism.
“The real issue is that Wike would like to support the President in 2027, that’s fine, it’s within his right to do that,” he said.
“But also some of us that want democracy to survive in Nigeria, we don’t drift into a one-party state, and we want to ensure that PDP survives, he should also allow us to do our own thing.”
Makinde added that President Tinubu did not request Wike to make such a commitment, describing the move as unsolicited.
“The President did not ask him; do this for me. He was the one who volunteered that I would do this,” he said.
Makinde said attempts to persuade Wike to reconsider his stance were unsuccessful, leading him to distance himself from the move.
“After he didn’t back off, I told him from that day that I would never be part of this,” the governor said.
He concluded by reaffirming his independence in making political decisions ahead of the 2027 elections.
“That is why I will never support the President for 2027. Wike can support him; it is within his right, but it is also within my right within the political space to determine who I will support or what I will do in 2027,” he added.