Dare Babalola
Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has firmly shut down speculation about switching parties, stating he has no plans to join the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) or leave the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), as he navigates the opposition party’s ongoing leadership turmoil.
Makinde made the declaration on Wednesday in Abuja at the public presentation of a book, ‘Headlines and Soundbites: Media Moments that Defined an Administration’, written by former Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.
He told a large crowd of dignitaries that cut across party lines that he was not ready to join any of the defecting PDP governors to the ruling party.
“I am not APC, and I am not about to become APC,” Makinde said.
He said Nigeria’s progress depends on sincere collaboration among leaders across political divides to move the country forward.
The governor accused the Nigerian elites of the country’s deepening divisions due to their individual ambitions rather than the will of ordinary citizens.
He noted that most Nigerians desire unity and coexistence, but lamented that this laudable desire is often manipulated along religious, ethnic, and regional lines by political elites for their personal gains
The governor stressed the need to jettison the “winner-takes-all” mentality in politics, arguing that it fuels exclusion and undermines national cohesion.
He then called for deliberate efforts to design political and governance arrangements that promote fairness, inclusion, and stability.
