Ex-Senate President Bukola Saraki, is brokering peace between former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose and Governor of Oyo State Seyi Makinde.
Fayose and Makinde have been on a warpath for quite some time now. Fayose insists that Makinde shouldn’t be carrying himself as leader of the PDP in the southwest because he’s the only PDP governor in the region.
Fayose has also warned Makinde that he’ll work against his re-election in 2023 if he doesn’t stop disrespecting him.
“When Makinde was to contest, I was the one that presented the flag to him and a red pen. It is a higher authority that hangs your rank, a senior officer hangs the rank of a junior officer, that means he saw me as a leader at the time I was giving him the flag at Ogbomoso,” Fayose said recently, adding that Makinde was only 32 years of age when he (Fayose) first became Governor of Ekiti in 2003.
“It was Governor (Rasheed) Ladoja that was holding the structure that we gave to him (Makinde), I was the only sitting governor at the time. I had powers to influence it negatively. Are you telling me the man that gave you red pen has suddenly become your enemy? If he has anything against me, let him say it. Governor Makinde should take it easy.
“If Makinde wants peace, he should stop that nonsense, I say it again nonsense. I mean every word I am saying. I’m a responsible Nigerian.
“If we were born in the same family, I will be older than Governor Makinde by 10 years even if I was not governor. I should be respected. I am a respectable figure in this country, forget any other story any other politician may say,” Fayose added.
The war between both politicians has polarised the PDP in the southwest; and Saraki is now initiating peace moves.
“As part of our ongoing efforts to reconcile the leaders and members of our great party, last week, I had a meeting with the former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose,” Saraki says.
“As a follow-up to that engagement and consultation, this evening, I just wrapped up an extensive but fruitful meeting with Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State.
“As we continue to listen to and learn about the concerns of stakeholders of our party, it is great to observe their willingness to work towards forging a stronger and more united Peoples Democratic Party,” Saraki, who has been in the PDP since the turn of the year, adds.
The PDP is Nigeria’s biggest opposition political party. It lost the federal government to a newly-formed APC in 2015.
