Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State said he didn’t deliver his state to President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu, despite contrary reports that he worked hand-in-hand with the APC’s candidate for his victory on the February 25th polls.
Makinde’s reaction is coming off the back of the margin Tinubu defeated PDP’s Atiku Abubakar with, in a state governed by a PDP member. Recall that Tinubu amassed a whopping 449,884 votes in Oyo, while Atiku pulled 182,977 votes.
Speaking on the development during Splash FM’s State Affairs with Desmond Obilo on Saturday, March 4, 2023, the governor said he was happy to be part of the process that “redrew the electoral map of Nigeria.”
Makinde’s words: “That is what they decide to do.”
“You know, you allow people to express themselves. A lot of our people, that is what they decided to do. They decided that, look, we want after eight years of presidency in the North, they want it to come to the South and this place being South-West, one of theirs was a candidate, so they supported one of their own.”
“We had a survey before that election; we knew that a lot of our people are agitating for a country where there is fairness, equity and justice. I pointed it out to our party.”
“I am glad that I am a part of a process that redrew the electoral map of Nigeria. That arrogance, I believe with the result of last Saturday’s election, is basically behind us. Now we know that people will have to seek alignment. If you want to rule this country, you are not just going to say oh, because I am from a certain part of this country, then that is the only qualification I require to rule this country. Now, you have to build bridges, and reach out to others.”
