AKURE, Ondo State — Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has defended his decision to contest the 2027 presidential election against President Bola Tinubu, arguing that the South-West region can legitimately present more than one candidate for the nation’s highest political office.
Makinde, who is running on the platform of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), made the remarks on Thursday in Akure, the Ondo State capital, during the South-West town hall meeting of the APM Makinde/Daura Campaign Organisation.
His declaration comes as Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), seeks re-election for a second term. Both politicians hail from the South-West, setting the stage for a potential contest between candidates from the same geopolitical zone.
Addressing concerns about challenging a sitting president from his own region, Makinde cited the 1999 presidential election, when former President Olusegun Obasanjo and the late Olu Falae contested against each other despite both being from the South-West.
According to the governor, the region has a history of presenting multiple presidential candidates and allowing Nigerians to decide whom they want to lead the country.
“The South-West zone of Nigeria has always been in the forefront of a better country for us. I’ve listened to people; they said to us, ‘Seyi Makinde, why are you contesting in this election when the South-West already has somebody seated on that seat?’” he said.
Makinde recalled that Obasanjo and Falae both contested the presidency in 1999, arguing that their participation did not undermine the region’s political interests.
“As a matter of fact, what the South-West did was to present two of their finest and best for Nigeria to choose from. Is there anything wrong with that this time around?” he asked.
The governor also urged voters to reject what he described as the “politics of deceit,” insisting that his record in Oyo State offered an indication of what he could deliver at the national level.
Makinde’s remarks suggest that he intends to make his administration’s performance a central part of his presidential campaign as political activities ahead of the 2027 general election gather momentum.
He also criticised the circumstances surrounding Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Jimoh Ibrahim, presenting the UN budget to Tinubu in Nigeria.
Makinde questioned the need for the trip from New York to Abuja, arguing that public funds should be spent carefully, particularly amid questions about the implementation of Nigeria’s own national budgets.
“I was watching on TV two days ago; Nigeria’s permanent representative at the United Nations brought the budget of the UN to present to the president of Nigeria in Nigeria. They can waste the taxpayers’ money because I refuse to agree that you must use the taxpayers’ money to fly from New York to Abuja to present the UN budget when, in fact, this is an administration that right now we don’t know which budget we’re operating on for Nigeria,” he said.
He further questioned whether the country was operating under the 2023, 2024, 2025 or 2026 budget, arguing that the presentation of the UN budget should be considered against the state of Nigeria’s own fiscal management.
Makinde contrasted his criticism of the Federal Government with what he described as improvements in budget implementation in Oyo State.
According to him, budget performance in the state stood between 28 and 30 per cent when he assumed office but had risen to more than 70 per cent over the following seven years.
He said the improvement had been sustained annually and added that his administration had operated a January-to-December budget cycle.
The governor’s comments add another dimension to the emerging political contest ahead of the 2027 election, with the possibility of competing presidential candidates from the South-West challenging the notion that the region should rally behind a single contender.
However, the ultimate outcome will depend on party nominations, electoral competition and voters’ decisions across Nigeria.
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