A Response from a Concerned PDP Member
By: Rita Ebiuwa
When Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State boldly declared that he has the capacity to become Nigeria’s President, it raised eyebrows and ignited conversations across political spaces. Capacity? Perhaps. The Nigerian Constitution guarantees every qualified citizen the right to aspire to any political office, including the highest one in the land. So, on that basis, Governor Makinde is well within his rights to dream big.
However, capacity alone does not qualify one for the ticket of a political party — loyalty, commitment, and consistency do.
This is where the real issue lies, and this is why many of us in the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) take serious exception to Governor Makinde’s recent posturing. The same Makinde who now seeks the PDP presidential ticket was part of the infamous G-5 — a group of five governors who, at a crucial time in our party’s journey, chose to place personal loyalty and ego above the collective interest of the party.
In the buildup to the 2023 general elections, when the PDP needed every loyal hand on deck, when the stakes were high and the party was gearing up to return to power at the federal level, Governor Makinde — alongside Nyesom Wike and other G-5 members — turned their backs on the party. Why? Because their preferred candidate, Wike, lost the presidential ticket to Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.
Rather than unite behind the party’s democratic choice, Makinde and his allies deliberately worked against PDP’s victory. They courted anti-party alliances, sowed division, and handed their respective states to the opposition — all in a bid to frustrate the party’s presidential campaign. That betrayal is still fresh in the minds of many party faithful.
Let’s not forget how we, as committed PDP members from all corners of the country, once rallied around Makinde. Many of us defended him from online attacks, engaged APC supporters in Oyo State, and promoted his policies even without ever meeting him — simply because he flew the PDP flag. That loyalty was one-sided. When the party needed him the most, he chose friendship with Wike and proximity to power over party principles.
Now, as 2027 draws near, Makinde is conveniently remembering the party. He wants the same platform he tried to destabilize to give him the most coveted ticket in Nigeria. But we must ask ourselves: to what end? So he can repeat the 2023 script — feign loyalty, secure the ticket, and then step down for Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the eleventh hour? Is this another backdoor plot to retain power within a close circle of allies?
We see through the game. The agenda is clear, and the party must not be deceived again.
Governor Makinde, you have the right to aspire, but not under the PDP — not after 2023. The party cannot afford to reward disloyalty. It is time to draw a line between those who stood firm through thick and thin, and those who only see the party as a vehicle for personal ambition. The PDP ticket must go to a member who has consistently served, defended, and stood by the party in its toughest moments.
As for you, Mr. Governor, finish your term, return home, and let the PDP rebuild itself without the shadow of betrayal hanging over its future.
There is no presidential ticket in 2027 for G-5 sympathizers. Not again.
