Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has declared his intention to provide Nigerians with an alternative to President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election, saying the Yoruba people should not be restricted to supporting the incumbent because of their shared ethnic identity.
Makinde, who is contesting the presidency on the platform of the Allied Peoples Movement, said his ambition was driven by the need to address Nigeria’s economic difficulties, insecurity and shortcomings in skills and knowledge development. He made the declaration during an interview with Arise Television on Friday.
The governor argued that Nigerians should be allowed to choose between candidates from the same ethnic group, insisting that the country’s challenges required a different approach to governance.
“I think where we are right now is Nigeria is at a crossroads. If the solution will come from a Yoruba President, they must have choices. I’m also a Yoruba person,” he said.
Makinde also ruled out the possibility of contesting as a vice-presidential candidate, stressing that he intended to seek the presidency independently rather than serve as a running mate to another politician.
“I’m not running as a deputy to somebody, or as a vice to somebody. I am running to tell the people of Nigeria that the inability of the current administration to tackle decisively our economic issues, to tackle decisively the issue of insecurity, to tackle decisively the issue of skills and knowledge for our people, is not a Yoruba agenda,” he said.
He further described his presidential bid as an opportunity to present a different leadership direction to Nigerians and the Yoruba people, expressing readiness to assume leadership at the federal level.
“I, as a Yoruba man, am putting on the table an alternative for the people of Nigeria and the Yoruba people. I’m the one going to the centre to say, ‘Look, at the centre, give me the opportunity to reset Nigeria. Let me be the Yoruba President,’” he added.
Tinubu, who is seeking re-election under the All Progressives Congress, is also a Yoruba politician from Lagos State.
Makinde’s presidential ambition therefore introduces another contender from the South-West into the race for the country’s highest political office.
The 2027 presidential election is expected to feature prominent political figures, including former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress, former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi of the Nigeria Democratic Congress and Peoples Democratic Party candidate Sandy Ojang Onor, alongside Tinubu and Makinde.
The contest is also taking place amid ongoing debates over Nigeria’s power-sharing arrangement and the informal rotation of the presidency between the North and South.
Tinubu assumed office in 2023 after the completion of Buhari’s two-term administration, which was led by a northern president.
Makinde’s position is that ethnic and regional considerations should not prevent Nigerians from having multiple choices, particularly when candidates from the same region are seeking the presidency.
His declaration comes as he prepares to challenge Tinubu on the APM platform, with his campaign centred on a proposed national reset, while the incumbent seeks another four-year term under the APC.
