By Chibuike Nwabuko
ABUJA (PRECISE POST) – Former Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose has given a dramatic account of what he described as a tense meeting between President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde at the Presidential Villa on Thursday.
In a statement issued on January 22, 2026 which he personally signed and released on his X handle, Fayose claimed that Governor Makinde did not have the courage to meet the President alone and therefore went to the Villa accompanied by the Plateau State Governor, Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang.
According to Fayose, the President made it clear that he was willing to listen to Makinde only on official matters concerning Oyo State, but not on political issues.
Fayose alleged that the President rejected any attempt by Makinde to privately explain or soften his earlier public accusation that the President was plotting to turn Nigeria into a one-party state. The President, Fayose claimed, told Makinde that political grievances should be aired publicly, just as the accusation was originally made.
“The President reportedly warned Makinde against saying one thing in public and another behind closed doors,” Fayose said.
The former governor further alleged that President Tinubu told Makinde not to expect his support ahead of the 2027 general elections, stressing that he would instead support his own party.
On the issue of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, Fayose claimed the President was unequivocal in his stance, allegedly describing Wike as a loyal and consistent ally whose support could not be ignored or wished away.
According to Fayose, the President told Makinde that any dispute between him and Wike was a personal matter and should not involve the Presidency.
Fayose argued that this encounter explained why Makinde later told journalists that he remained comfortable in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), insisting that there was “nothing for him” in the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The former Ekiti governor also raised fresh questions over governance in Oyo State, calling on Makinde to explain whether he had returned the ₦30 billion intervention fund he previously admitted receiving from the Federal Government following the January 2023 Ibadan explosion.
