President Bola Tinubu is currently holding a closed-door meeting with the Governor of Oyo State and a leading figure in the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Seyi Makinde, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Governor Makinde arrived shortly after his Plateau State counterpart, Caleb Mutfwang, who proceeded directly to the President’s office upon arrival at the State House.

Makinde was a prominent member of the group of five PDP governors, popularly known as the G-5, who opposed the emergence of Atiku Abubakar as the party’s presidential candidate in 2023 and worked in support of Tinubu during the presidential election.

The governors argued that, in line with the PDP’s zoning arrangement, it was the South’s turn to produce the president after the eight-year tenure of Muhammadu Buhari from the North.
Other members of the G-5 were Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, Samuel Ortom of Benue, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu, and Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia.

Relations between Makinde and Wike have since deteriorated following Wike’s appointment as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

In a recent interview, Makinde attributed the rift to an alleged comment by Wike during a meeting with President Tinubu, in which Wike reportedly said he would “hold the PDP” for the President ahead of the 2027 election without the consent of other party stakeholders.

“I was in a meeting with the President and Wike and a few others, and Wike said to the President that he would hold the PDP for him ahead of 2027,” Makinde recalled.

“So we got up, and I asked him, did we agree to this?”

Makinde stressed that while Wike is entitled to support Tinubu’s re-election bid, other PDP leaders also have the right to protect the party and oppose actions that could undermine democratic pluralism.

“The real issue is that Wike would like to support the President in 2027; that is his right,” Makinde said. “But those of us who want democracy to survive and do not want Nigeria to drift into a one-party state must also be allowed to do our own thing.”

He added that President Tinubu did not solicit Wike’s pledge, describing it as unsolicited.

According to Makinde, efforts to persuade Wike to reconsider were unsuccessful, prompting him to distance himself from the move.

“That is why I will not support the President in 2027,” he said. “Wike can support him; it is within his rights. It is also within my right to determine who I will support in 2027.”

As of the time of filing this report, the agenda of the meeting between President Tinubu and Governor Makinde had not been disclosed.