The campaign organisation of Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde has declared that its candidate will defeat President Bola Tinubu in 12 battleground states in the January 2027 presidential election, insisting that growing public dissatisfaction could weaken the incumbent’s chances of re-election.
The Makinde-Daura Presidential Campaign Organisation (MDPCO), which is backing Makinde of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), said Tinubu’s planned visits to the states would not change voters’ determination to reject his administration.
The organisation attributed the alleged growing opposition to economic hardship and what it described as the government’s failure to address the difficulties facing Nigerians.
In a statement issued by its Director of Strategic Communications, Richard Nnanna Ihediwa, the campaign group said Makinde’s RESET NIGERIA agenda was attracting support across the country, particularly among young people.
The 12 states identified by the organisation are Oyo, Kaduna, Rivers, Plateau, Borno, Enugu, Bauchi, Sokoto, Delta, Kano, Adamawa and Lagos. The group said Tinubu had identified the states for personal campaign visits ahead of the election.
“Mr. President should know that his visit to these states, if he eventually does, will not in any way change the direction or the determination of the people to vote him out,” the statement said.
Makinde’s Camp Challenges Tinubu to Tour States by Road
The campaign organisation challenged Tinubu to travel by road through the identified states to see the condition of federal highways, public infrastructure and the living conditions of Nigerians.
It argued that such a tour would expose the scale of the challenges confronting citizens and the deterioration of infrastructure across the country.
The group also accused the administration of spending trillions of naira on projects and programmes it considered wasteful while Nigerians continued to experience economic difficulties.
It dismissed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda as ineffective and presented Makinde’s RESET NIGERIA programme as an alternative approach to governance.
According to the campaign organisation, the proposed programme would involve an inclusive four-year transitional government of national unity, built around four priority areas: education, the economy, security and socio-political reforms.
The economic component would focus on increasing production to tackle poverty, while the security plan would combine intelligence gathering with social reorientation and both kinetic and non-kinetic measures.
On education, the organisation said Makinde’s agenda would seek to improve access to quality and functional learning. Its proposed institutional reforms would focus on inclusive governance and responsible leadership.
Campaign Says Young Nigerians Are Embracing Makinde
The MDPCO claimed that feedback from its field operations indicated that the RESET NIGERIA message was gaining traction, especially among young Nigerians seeking an alternative to the current administration.
The organisation also criticised members of Tinubu’s proposed campaign council, describing them as politicians who had failed to attract significant electoral support.
It urged the President not to waste public resources on what it called his “Nebuchadnezzar” campaign council.
The group maintained that neither Tinubu’s campaign machinery nor the advantages of incumbency would prevent what it described as an emerging electoral backlash.
It insisted that Makinde would defeat the President in the 12 battleground states and across the country in the 2027 presidential election.
The claims represent the campaign organisation’s position ahead of the election, with the eventual outcome to be determined by voters.
