Nyesom Wike has declared that the presidential ambition of Seyi Makinde is “dead on arrival.”
Wike made the statement on Thursday while speaking with journalists during an inspection of road projects in Abuja, just hours after Makinde officially declared his intention to contest the 2027 presidential election.
Makinde had earlier announced his ambition during a joint mega rally involving factions of the Peoples Democratic Party and the Allied Peoples Movement in Ibadan.
During the declaration, the Oyo governor said Nigeria’s condition had continued to deteriorate, with many citizens struggling daily for survival.
Reacting to the development, Wike dismissed reports of any formal alliance between the PDP and APM, describing the arrangement as fraudulent.
“That’s the 419 we are talking about,” he said.
“INEC also knows that there is no such thing as a PDP-APM alliance.”
The minister accused some opposition politicians of misleading Nigerians with claims of a merger or a memorandum of understanding between the two parties.
According to him, the Independent National Electoral Commission has no record of any recognised alliance between the PDP and APM.
Wike further argued that Makinde’s political strategy was simply an attempt to use the APM platform to pursue his presidential ambition.
“What you have is Seyi Makinde joining APM to be able to actualise his presidential ambition, which is already dead on arrival,” he stated.
The former Rivers State governor maintained that the PDP would field its own presidential candidate in 2027 and urged Nigerians to ignore speculation surrounding any coalition arrangement.
He also referenced Bala Mohammed, saying no alliance discussions involving the PDP and APM had been raised during internal party consultations.
Earlier during the inspection exercise, Wike expressed satisfaction with progress on the 13-kilometre Gomani-Yangoji road project, which he said was expected to be inaugurated during activities marking the third anniversary of President Bola Tinubu’s inauguration.
According to the minister, the infrastructure project reflects the administration’s commitment to expanding development beyond city centres into satellite communities to reduce rural-urban migration.
