Behind The Bluster: Makinde’s Second Term Hubris | Muftau Gbadegesin

In interviews and rallies, Governor Seyi Makinde has maintained his attack on both the Tinubu’s administration and the Oyo APC Guber candidate, Sharafadeen Alli.

He has, occasionally, thrown jabs at the candidate of the Accord Party, Oriyomi Hamzat for daring to eat into the potential votes of his own handpicked candidate, Bimbo Adekanbi.

In speeches and statements, Makinde has criticised, condemned and called the removal of fuel subsidy the most painful economic policy in the country’s modern history. In a recent statement, he claimed Tinubu’s government is running a ‘voodoo’ economy, adding that life has become extremely difficult for the people since the twin policies of fuel subsidy removal and unification of exchange rate were enacted.

“How can a person just decide one day that he will remove the fuel subsidy (and at the same time, they still went ahead and floated the naira) without any cushioning effect or any palliative to fill the gap?”, Makinde wondered in a statement delivered on his behalf by Babatunde Ajani, a national leader of the APM, in Abeokuta, Ogun State.

Where you’d expect tact, decorum and diplomacy, the governor seems to have relied on his tongue while feeding his supporters and followers with populist biles. Make no mistake: Governor Seyi Makinde is a proper populist and like any populist, he does not mind sounding a bit offensive and reckless just to score cheap political points.

“For those that are carrying on as if there’s no tomorrow. They should remember that “operation wetie” started from here. This is the same Wild Wild West”, Makinde blurted on April 25, 2026 while hosting leaders of the opposition parties summit in Ibadan.

By invoking the violent political history of “operation wetie”, Makinde, once the biggest cheerleader of the jailed and notorious Mukaila Lamidi aka Auxiliary, stirred the hornet’s nest of political firestorm. In other examples, he has flippantly told traditional rulers of his readiness to fight dirty with them. He seems to have entered into the ring of political smackdown, waiting for anyone willing to wrestle with him.

Nearly all second term governors have suffered from one recklessness or the other. I think that concept should be term: second term syndrome: a psychological illness that derails politicians once they are nearing the end of their time in office. Interestingly, Makinde is not an exception. In his second term in office, the late Abiola Ajimobi fought tooth and nail with the late Olubadan Saliu Adetunji. The fallout from that avoidable dogfight accumulated to the eventual electoral defeat that Ajimobi and his party suffered in 2019. Makinde rode on the tidal wave of that public discontent and sentiment against Ajimobi to build a coalition that ultimately proved formidable for the APC.

But the late Ajimobi wasn’t the only second term governor to have his political structure whittled by a strong opposition. In Ogun State, Senator Ibikunle Amosun’s political base got depleted after fighting his own party and its gubernatorial candidate to a standstill in 2019. In Osun, the refusal of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola to sheath his sword led to the defeat of his former party, its candidate and his acclaimed relevance in Osun politics. Up north, the bromance between Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso and his successor, Abdullahi Ganduje led to a bitter split in their camps. In 2023, the two tested the waters of their popularity by fielding different candidates. In 2027, they are going to face each other in another epic political showdown.

Back to Oyo, whatever anyone makes of the recent political jabs of Governor Seyi Makinde, one thing is clear: increased verbal attacks on opponents appear to show a camp desperate to turn issue based campaigns to one of insults and vitriol. Granted, that sort of campaign does have a place in the country’s democracy. But for a governor aspiring to lead the country to engage in beer parlour discussion is off-kilter. This constant thrills to appear in the news, just for the fun of it, will soon crater. By attacking characters, rather than what they stand for, the governor is arming his critics with numerous munitions. Or perhaps, the governor is playing the offensive game rather than watch as opponents vaporize his government with blitzkrieg.

Even at that, as Governor, certain guardrails must exist to protect not just the office but the institution from becoming the peddler and purveyor of pettiness. In the 2027 elections, Governor Makinde will appear as a candidate hoping to help his candidates flip the coin against their opponents. His party is banking on many factors to turn the tide of twelve years of APC domination in the national assembly. For a Governor that emerged on account of his introverted ideals to have found his voice is telling on the level of opposition being mounted against him. However, in this game of name calling and verbal insults, Governor Makinde has a master at hand. Of course, Senator Sharafadeen Alli may not be able to match the Governor’s blow for blow, verbally, but the presence of Alhaji Oriyomi Hamzat has already added vista to the political campaign. An iconic radio man, Oriyomi Hamzat’s greatest weapon is his mouth. Endowed beyond reasonable doubt, Hamzats tongue has the capacity to shred any iota of credibility left in the Makinde’s camp. By stepping on the tails of his adversaries, Governor Makinde has invited his opponents to cut him some slack and hit his camp with their most potent weapons.

“People are saying I should step down for the bigwigs and I wondered why anyone in their right senses would advise me to hand over my constitutional right to someone that is being told what to wear and what to say” he was referring to APM candidate, Bimbo Adekambi. He stated further: “or is it that man that has stayed long in politics without any impact that I will step down for”, he argued in one of his engagements with the people of the state. I think Oriyomi Hamzat is one opponent with a very sharp tongue that others may want to avoid in a verbal combat. He is simply unstoppable. And for a governor who once called for opponents to refrain from attacking him since he is not the one on the gubernatorial ballot in the state, it seems he has handed them a new lease to punch him, his party and candidates very hard long before the first ballot is cast. In any case, the people of Oyo State will listen carefully as each of the contestants speak to them about their plans for the great good of our dear state.

PLAIN TALK is Muftau Gbadegesin’s commentary on contemporary socio-political Issues affecting Oyo State and beyond. He writes every Saturday and can be reached on X and muftaugbadegesin@gmail.com