Former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, has alleged details of what transpired during the recent meeting between Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar in Minna, Niger State.
Fayose made the claims in a statement issued on Wednesday and shared on his verified X account, titled “Between Atiku and Makinde, Untold Story of What Happened in Minna.”
The former governor said Makinde travelled to Minna on Tuesday to meet Atiku and that the venue and key figures present at the meeting were deliberately selected to ensure what he described as “confidence and acceptability” among stakeholders.
According to Fayose, the discussions were influenced by concerns over the choice of a possible running mate for Atiku ahead of the next presidential election.
He claimed that the former vice president’s camp believes that Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, would neither accept to run as Atiku’s deputy nor be generally acceptable in the North as a potential successor.
Fayose further alleged that Atiku is confident of securing the presidential ticket of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), following what he described as arrangements to ensure that the party’s ticket would not be zoned.
He claimed that Makinde, during the meeting, agreed in principle to join the ADC on the condition that he would emerge as Atiku’s running mate on the party’s presidential ticket.
According to the statement, Fayose said the proposal is expected to be presented to Atiku’s inner caucus for further deliberations and possible approval.
The former Ekiti governor also alleged that Makinde assured Atiku of his ability to mobilise political support for the ADC, particularly during the party’s primary election.
He claimed that Makinde pledged to deliver delegates from the South-West during the ADC primary and to leverage family ties in Rivers State to secure support from the South-South.
He said: “Atiku is 70% certain of getting the ADC ticket, having ensured the non-zoning of the party’s presidential ticket. Makinde agreed to join ADC on the condition that he will be handed the party’s Vice Presidential ticket, as Atiku’s running mate. This is expected to be presented to Atiku’s inner caucus for further discussions and ratification.”
Fayose further stated that Makinde reportedly argued that his participation in the race would help the ADC gain strategic advantage by splitting votes in the South-West during the general election.
He added that, according to his account, a follow-up meeting between the two camps has been scheduled to hold in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, within the next two weeks.
Neither Makinde nor Atiku had reacted to the claims as of the time of filing this report.
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