Makinde said the revelation left him “in shock” and marked the beginning of the deepening crisis within the opposition PDP.
The Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has disclosed details of a private meeting with President Bola Tinubu and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, where Wike allegedly volunteered to deliver the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the President ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Makinde said the revelation left him “in shock” and marked the beginning of the deepening crisis within the opposition PDP.
Speaking during a media chat on Tuesday, Makinde said he was present at a meeting attended by President Tinubu, Wike, the President’s Chief of Staff and other top officials when Wike openly told the President that he would “hold the PDP” for him against the 2027 elections.
“I was in a meeting with the President and Wike, and Wike said to the President, ‘Sir, I will hold PDP for you against 2027.’ I was in shock,” Makinde said.
According to the Oyo governor, the comment was not discussed or agreed upon beforehand, prompting him to immediately confront Wike after the meeting.
“We got to the veranda and I asked him, ‘Wike, did we agree to this?’ I don’t like talking about people, but I will talk about the real issue,” he stated.
Makinde stressed that while Wike has the constitutional right to support President Tinubu for a second term, others within the PDP also have the right to resist what he described as an attempt to weaken the opposition and push Nigeria towards a one-party state.
“Wike would like to support the President for 2027. That’s fine. It is within his right to do so. But some of us want to ensure that democracy survives in Nigeria and that we don’t drift into a one-party state,” he said.
The governor said he made it clear to Wike from that moment that he would not be part of any arrangement aimed at subordinating the PDP to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
“I told him from that day that I would never be a part of this. And that is why I will not be supporting the President for 2027. Wike can support him. That is his right. But it is also my right to decide what I will do politically in 2027,” Makinde declared.
Makinde further suggested that Wike’s actions were unsolicited, saying the President never asked Wike to make such a commitment on behalf of the PDP.
“He volunteered something the President did not send him to do. I told a mutual friend of ours that maybe he was running an errand that he was never sent on,” Makinde said.
The Oyo governor said efforts were initially made to observe and engage Wike quietly, hoping he would retreat from the position. However, when that did not happen, he decided to confront the issue head-on.
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