For Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo state, these are not the best of times.
The egos of the perceived ” poster boy of the PDP” is seriously been deflated on a daily basis.
Few days after his interview on a popular Television trended, like wild fire, the carpet was withdrawn from under his feet.
In that interview, Governor Seyi Makinde raised dusts.
He declared that he has the capacity to be Nigeria’s president in 2027.
On the surface of that statement, you might not argue with him but the events of the past few days have since shown that, the race for the Nigerian presidency is a game between Tigers and if a dog dare to venture into the arena, he automatically becomes minced meat.
I remember Baba Adedibu this morning.
He had likened the political terrains to a College populated by Tigers.( Ni koleji ekun, ni koleji ekun, aja o nii debe loo kawe, ni koleji ekun), the old man would sing.
I used to tell those who cared to listen that there is nothing special about Governor Seyi Makinde’s ascendancy in politics.
His palm kernels were cracked for him by benevolent spirits, twice and it got too much into his head.
In 2019, he was lucky to be the beneficiary of the coalition of political forces put together by Ladoja.
I make bold to say that whoever that coalition threw up would have defeated Bayo Adelabu of the APC at the time.
In 2023, Governor Makinde’s second term ambition was resurrected by the agreement Tinubu made with the G-5 before the 2023 general election.
Unfortunately for Makinde, his involvement and activities in the G-5 was the beginning of a chain of events that would shape his political trajectory.
When they were digging a hole for the PDP at the time, they dug too deep. Unfortunately, he and others have fallen into that same pit, dug in 2023.
Reasonably, I thought Makinde would complete the cycle by jumping ship at the time, because, if he was politically savvy, he ought to know at the time, that the one they exposed their rump to, Tinubu, is a master of the game and that he would exploit the cracks to finish the PDP off at the right time.
Unfortunately and characteristically, Governor Seyi Makinde thought he could beat Tinubu in a game he, Tinubu invented.
Governor Makinde hosted PDP Governors in Ibadan a couple of weeks ago and a few days after the said meeting where a Communique was issued, to the effects that PDP Governors are not in support of Atiku’s merger plans, the PDP has been torn to shreds.
I am surprised that Makinde failed to see the handwriting on the wall.
He and his gang of G-5 had done great damage to the PDP since 2023.
A lawless society is no longer a normal society.
Governor Makinde and others have killed discipline within the PDP and that was beginning of the end of the Party.
How on earth could a party man, moreso, a sitting Governor, admitted to working against the Presidential candidate of his Party and still considers himself a member of such a Party?
In this case, Governor Makinde and others destroyed the Party for selfish reasons in 2023 and they kept decimating the Party ever since then, turning the Governor’s Forum to a parallel NEC of the Party and they expect the Party to prosper?
I am bewildered that in Governor Makinde’s political naivity, he failed to see the handwriting on the walls.
Now, others are following in their footsteps of 2023 and they have to live with it.
From verifiable information, the PDP would be left with a scanty number of Governors in the coming days.
I am surprised that Makinde and the few Governors left in the Party decided to publicly condemn Atiku for seeking a coalition with other political Parties. That is the only way for the PDP to have, at least, a fighting chance in 2027 but ego and greed won’t allow them to admit it.
The other time, Governor Makinde was saying that Atiku referred to them as boys and asked them where they were when the PDP was being formed.
Have they not proven Atiku right?
How could they be blind to the activities of their brother Governors who have been hobnobbing with Bola Tinubu’s APC to the extent that the Governor of Akwa Ibom state had endorsed Tinubu for a second term in office, even before the Ibadan jamboree?
Is it not curious that while they were dissipating energy to challenge the declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers state at the Supreme court, the one, on whose behalf they were fighting was having other ideas?
That must have hurt a lot.
Like I said earlier, Governor Seyi Makinde is a very lucky man but he has been pressing his luck too much.
The other time, he said he would announce his successor in January, 2026 and when there was an uproar, he reframed the statement and said he would announce the candidate for his Party in January, 2026 and the people of Oyo state would finally determine whether to accept him or not.
At another time, he said no one above a particular age bracket would become Governor after him.
Those statements are reckless to say the least.
Even within his own political Party, he lacks the authority to go above the recommendation of the Constitution of the PDP to elect a candidate who will aspire to succeed him.
As a sitting Governor, I am aware of the fact that he posseses enormous powers and within his Party, his wishes are law but he ought to have been diplomatic about it.
As for his rumored or is it, perceived Presidential ambition, I am sure Governor Seyi Makinde is perspiring right now.
He and the Bauchi state Governor, with whom, rumors say, they are nursing a joint Presidential ticket under the Umbrella Party must be shaking with disbelief as we speak.
When they thought they had the Party in their grips, disaster struck.
The unfortunate part of this whole thing is that the rain just began to fall.
Who knows for how long it would rain?
The Delta state Governor is gone. The Akwa Ibom state Governor have been dancing to the rhythm of ” on your mandate we shall stand…”, the gentleman at Rivers state, according to the News, has been taking care of his problems outside the PDP’s circle and might move any time from now.
There are rumors of defections in the Plateau and no one knows what the dancing Governor would do next.
Governor Makinde and the G-5 have laid a foundation called ” survive at whatever costs” and some PDP Governors are following their footsteps.
Who would blame them?
At this point, the options before Governor Makinde are limited and none of them seems pleasant.
He could move ahead and declare his intentions to run for presidency under the PDP as it were.
Infact, he would have an easy ride because, from available intel, the PDP would soon become a dead carcass as there is bound to be more defections in the coming days.
He and the few other Governors left in the PDP could swallow their pride and follow Atiku to wherever he is going with his merger plans or, he could, like others, join the APC and negotiate something for himself.
However, if he chose to go to the APC, he must know that, unlike in 2023 when he had a field day, this time around, he has little or no leverage to dictate the terms of negotiations.
The transfer season just began and honestly, I wish Governor Seyi Makinde well as he ponders on the options before him towards 2027.
The events of the past few days should guide his thoughts and minister to him to stay humble ehh!
The presidency in Nigeria is a terrain for the men and when the men do their things, the boys should be humble enough to watch and learn.
” Ni koleji ekun, ni koleji ekun, aja o nii debe lo kawe ni koleji ekun”, in Adedibu’s lyrics.
SOLA ABEGUNDE.
