APM Says Tinubu Afraid Of Makinde’s Popularity, Performance

The Allied Peoples Movement (APM) has accused the President Bola Tinubu-led administration and the All Progressives Congress (APC) of deliberately excluding Oyo State Governor and the party’s presidential candidate, Seyi Makinde, from the flag-off ceremony of the Ibadan-Ijebu Ode federal road project because of the governor’s growing popularity and record in infrastructure development.

The APM, in a statement on Tuesday by its National Publicity Secretary, Abubakar Yusuf, said the Tinubu administration was afraid that Makinde’s presence at the event would have “eclipsed” the President and drawn attention to his administration’s performance in the South-West.

The party described the decision not to invite Makinde as an indication that the Presidency was uncomfortable with the governor’s rising profile ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

According to the APM, “The Tinubu Presidency and the APC were scared that Makinde’s presence at the event would have further exposed President Tinubu’s failures, as the APM presidential candidate has done far better than the President in the last three years, including in the execution of road projects.”

The party claimed that while Tinubu, who hails from the South-West, had been unable to point to the initiation, execution and completion of up to 250 kilometres of roads across the region since assuming office in 2023, Makinde had executed more than 360 kilometres of roads in Oyo State alone.

It added that more road projects executed by the Oyo governor were awaiting commissioning.

The APM also accused the APC of being uneasy about Makinde’s ability to unite governors, political leaders and other stakeholders across the country on major national issues.

It argued that his presence at the road project ceremony would have attracted considerable attention and potentially shifted the focus of the event away from the Federal Government.

The party further suggested that concerns over Makinde’s popularity could have contributed to Tinubu’s absence from the ceremony.

The APM, however, said it was not perturbed by the development, insisting that the Presidency and the APC could not avoid confronting Makinde indefinitely.

“APC and the Tinubu Presidency must note that they cannot run from Governor Makinde forever. They must surely meet him at the poll in January 2027 where the will of millions of Nigerians in preference for Governor Makinde as the replacement for President Tinubu cannot be suppressed,” the party said.