In a move that has sent shockwaves through the political landscape of Oyo State, Governor Seyi Makinde has officially declared the race for Agodi House open. Addressing a gathering of party faithful in Ibadan on Thursday, the Governor gave an unprecedented “green light” to all governorship hopefuls, urging them to begin their public campaigns for the 2027 elections.
In a season where many politicians are playing their cards close to their chests due to internal party friction, Makinde’s directive was characteristically blunt.
”Today, I have freed everyone,” the Governor announced. “Anyone who wants to contest for Oyo State Governor in 2027, please bring out your billboards. Don’t be bothered about the PDP crisis. Go ahead and put the PDP logo on your billboards.”
The Governor’s statement comes at a time when the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is facing what many analysts describe as its most existential threat since 1999. Following the 2023 general elections, the party has seen a massive exodus of high-ranking members to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
The latest blow to the party’s national structure was the defection of Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State.
Furthermore, the party’s crisis has reached a tipping point in neighboring Osun State, where both the PDP and the Labour Party were conspicuously missing from the final list of candidates released by INEC for the upcoming August 8, 2026, governorship election.
Despite the litigation and leadership tussles marring the national PDP, Makinde’s “freedom declaration” suggests he intends to maintain Oyo as a PDP stronghold. By encouraging aspirants to proudly display the party’s logo, he is signaling a “business as usual” approach in the Pacesetter State, regardless of the storm in Abuja.
With this announcement, the streets of Ibadan, Ogbomoso, Saki, and Oyo are expected to be flooded with political signage in the coming weeks, as the battle to succeed Makinde—the only PDP governor left standing strong in the South-West—truly begins.