Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has denied claims that he plans and have promised President Bola Tinubu that he would ‘hold down’ the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, recently accused Minister Wike of promising President Tinubu that he would hold the opposition party down for him, an allegation that he refutes amid tensions within the PDP, which escalated last week.
In an end-of-the-year media chat on Monday, Minister Wike described Makinde’s allegation as a blatant lie.
The FCT Minister rather described Governor Makinde as ‘frustrated’ and one who lacked the courage to openly declare his own presidential ambitions.
“Seyi Makinde has never called me Wike. That is the first time I have heard him calling me Wike. It’s unfortunate.
“First of all, you ask yourself, what was that meeting? What was the purpose of that meeting? That would have led me to say, Mr President, I will hold PDP down for you,” Minister noted.
The former Rivers State Governor queried why, if the allegation were true, Governor Makinde did not raise the issue earlier after the alleged meeting with President Tinubu.
“Why did Seyi Makinde not come up all this while to tell the party, see what Wike is doing? I was in a meeting. I saw what Wike said. It’s not correct,” he said.
Minister Wike in setting the record straight said: “There was no such meeting. Rather, my humble self, the former governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom, the former Governor of Abia State, Okezie Ikpeazu, the former Governor of Enugu State, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, and Seyi Makinde, went to see the President.
“We went to see the President after elections were over, to discuss certain things. While we were there, the Chief of Staff — you should know that the Chief of Staff is always around the President.
“I was the one who said, look, Chief of Staff, come and sit down, so we can remind the president of what we have discussed. There was nothing like a meeting we booked to go and see Mr President. So, it is completely out of place for anybody to say that in that meeting I told Mr President that I would hold PDP down for him.”
Describing the claim as “very, totally unfair,” Minister Wike said the Oyo State governor was frustrated.
“I have told everybody, frustration — if you can see it, if you watch Seyi Makinde, you can see frustration. And this young man, we have advised severely.
“Politics is not like being a contractor with Shell. Politics is not like being a contractor. It has different rules.
“When did Seyi Makinde come into politics? There is nothing wrong with having ambition, but the ambition must be pursued according to the rules.”
NewsQuest reports that Minister Wike, and the Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde, once allies in the PDP G5 governors’ group, have recently clashed publicly over PDP’s future and 2027 election strategies.
This fallout threatens PDP unity ahead of 2027 elections, with analysts noting its significance for party cohesion.
