The Chief Press Secretary to Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, Sulaimon Olarenwaju, has dismissed allegations by former Ekiti State Governor Ayo Fayose that Makinde received ₦50 billion in support from President Bola Tinubu after the 2024 Ibadan explosion.
Olarenwaju, in a telephone interview with Punch on Saturday afternoon, challenged Fayose to substantiate his claim with evidence.
“He who makes an allegation must provide evidence. Let him produce proof for what he claims. It is important to note that Fayose lacks credibility; even his family has denounced him. What credibility does he have? Such a person speaks ordinarily, and we should not pay attention. But if he has made a claim, let him substantiate it,” Olarenwaju said.
The Ibadan explosion occurred in January 2024 at Adeyi Avenue, killing five people, injuring 77, and damaging about 55 houses. Makinde had visited the Aso Rock Presidential Villa on January 22, 2024, to present a report on the incident to President Tinubu.
Fayose, in a TVC interview on Friday, alleged that Makinde failed to disclose that he secured ₦50bn in support from the presidency, claiming it was tied to his meeting with Tinubu.
Fayose said the ₦50bn did not go into Oyo State’s coffers, but was connected to Makinde’s audience with the President.
“You did not tell Nigerians you got, at the prerogative, at the mercy of Mr President, you got ₦50 billion in support of the explosion in Ibadan. He never said that to Nigeria,” Fayose claimed.
He added that while Makinde publicly shared some of his conversations with Tinubu, such as declining to organise the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo, he failed to inform Nigerians about what the President allegedly did for his state.
Responding to Fayose’s claims, Olarenwaju asked whether the President or the federal government had ever acknowledged such a donation.
He said, “There is no substance whatsoever. Did the President say anything of the sort? Did the federal government make such a statement? If neither the President nor the federal government said so, who is Fayose to claim it? There was no fifty‑billion‑naira donation.”
Fayose’s assertions come against the backdrop of wider political tension, including Makinde’s earlier declaration that he would not support Tinubu in the 2027 election and his refusal to help organise the APC in Oyo State.
Fayose also took aim at Makinde’s practice of making private conversations public, recounting an experience from their past.
“He called me after an interview and said what he told me about not contesting against the president was private … But the same Governor Makinde went to the public and said all the discussions he had with the president and that he’s not going to be part of the president’s reelection,” Fayose said.
Fayose added a prediction about Makinde’s political ambitions, “Governor Makinde’s candidate will not contest under the platform of the PDP.”
Positioning himself in ongoing internal PDP disputes, Fayose reaffirmed his loyalty to Minister Nyesom Wike.
He said, “I’m a Wike person. Anywhere Wike is, that is where I am. I will never join the APC.”