Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has revealed that President Bola Tinubu rejected his recommendation of Bimbo Adekanmbi for a ministerial position, opting instead to appoint Bayo Adelabu as Minister of Power.
Makinde disclosed this during a media chat with Fresh FM on Sunday, where he also discussed the political arrangements surrounding the alliance between Tinubu and five governors of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ahead of the 2023 presidential election.
According to the governor, Tinubu had initially asked him to recommend a development economist for a position relating to budget and economic planning. He said he nominated Adekanmbi because of the role he believed the former official played in stabilising Oyo State’s finances under the administration of former Governor Abiola Ajimobi.
Makinde, however, said Tinubu later informed him that he had decided to appoint Adelabu, whom the Oyo governor contested against in the 2019 governorship election.
“I said: ‘Okay, I know Bayo. I contested against Bayo in 2019. He is a first-class material’,” Makinde recalled.
He said the President subsequently asked him to publicly present the appointment as his own choice.
“And then the president eventually said: ‘Well, since I’ve taken this decision to appoint Bayo, you should go and take ownership of him, like go out and say it was your choice’,” the governor said.
Makinde said he declined the request, insisting that the appointment should be recognised as the President’s decision.
“So I said, ‘No, sir. Bayo is your choice, and let it be known to the people that it is your choice.
“I’m supposed to help you by nominating people who can add value to your administration. If you’ve seen somebody who can do that, that’s good’,” he added.
Makinde Speaks on G5 Governors’ Alliance
The governor also revisited the political alliance involving five PDP governors who refused to support their party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, during the 2023 election.
The group, popularly known as the G5, comprised Makinde, Nyesom Wike, Samuel Ortom, Okezie Ikpeazu and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi. Their disagreement with the PDP leadership centred partly on the party’s internal arrangements and demands for power rotation.
Makinde said he later learnt that other governors had similarly been asked to adopt ministerial nominees selected by Tinubu.
“The G5, minus, of course, Wike, was not given ministerial appointments,” he said.
He added that the arrangement was not limited to members of the G5, claiming that several governors were asked to accept nominees chosen by the President.
“The point I’m trying to make is that most of my colleagues, not just those in the G5, my governor colleagues, right, were given people and asked to adopt those people as theirs,” Makinde said.
The governor also described the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, as the principal beneficiary of the political understanding between Tinubu and the G5 governors.
The alliance became a significant factor in the run-up to the 2023 election, when the five governors withheld support for Atiku amid the crisis over PDP leadership and the demand for a southern presidential candidate.
Makinde Appoints New Chief of Staff
Meanwhile, Makinde has appointed Bashorun Akinwole, popularly known as Wolekanle, as his new Chief of Staff and approved the appointment of Mrs Aderonke Adedayo as Director-General of the state’s Due Process Office.
The appointments were announced in a statement issued in Ibadan by the governor’s Special Adviser on Media, Sulaimon Olanrewaju.
According to the statement, the appointment letters were signed by the Secretary to the State Government, Professor Musibau Babatunde, and take immediate effect.
Akinwole previously served as chairman of the Oyo State Local Government Service Commission. Adedayo, who currently serves as Special Adviser on General Intervention and Donor Agencies, will combine that responsibility with her new role at the Due Process Office.
Makinde congratulated the appointees and charged them to discharge their responsibilities with loyalty, commitment and dedication to public service.
The new appointments come as the governor continues to make changes within his administration while speaking publicly about political developments surrounding the 2023 presidential election and his relationship with the Federal Government.
