Governor Seyi Makinde has offered a personal account of the political journey that eventually took him from supporting established political leaders in Oyo State to building an independent political structure that culminated in his election as governor in 2019.
According to Makinde, his political journey began around 2002 when he and his associates established the Fortune Group, initially with the ambition of supporting then-Governor Rashidi Ladoja. His hope, he explained, was that Ladoja would eventually accept him as a political protégé and leader. That relationship, however, did not develop in the way he had anticipated.
Makinde said he subsequently sought political mentorship and leadership from other prominent Oyo politicians, including former Governors Adebayo Alao-Akala and Abiola Ajimobi, but those efforts also did not produce the political relationship he desired.
His account is consistent with earlier interviews in which he explained that the Fortune Group was formed by friends who wanted to support a leader with business experience, and that the group backed Ladoja during his successful 2003 governorship bid. Makinde also said the group later supported political aspirants at the grassroots level before his own political ambitions became more pronounced.
In 2007, Makinde took his first direct shot at elective office, contesting for the Senate under the then-All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP). He has said that he wanted to use his experience in the oil and gas industry, particularly his knowledge of local content issues, to contribute to national policymaking from the Senate.
That attempt was unsuccessful. Contemporary accounts also record that Makinde later sought another opportunity to contest for the Senate in 2011 but was not given the ticket.
Makinde has attributed some of these setbacks to perceptions within the political establishment that he was too independent-minded and could eventually become a political threat. He said he encountered similar resistance while interacting with the political camps of Ladoja, Alao-Akala and Ajimobi.
Rather than abandoning politics, Makinde eventually decided to pursue his own political path.
By 2015, he had moved beyond the ambition of becoming a senator and entered the Oyo State governorship race. He contested under the Social Democratic Party (SDP) after leaving the PDP political structure. The 2015 election was a highly competitive contest involving incumbent Governor Abiola Ajimobi, former Governor Rashidi Ladoja, former Governor Alao-Akala, Teslim Folarin and Makinde. Makinde secured 54,740 votes, while Ajimobi won the election with 327,310 votes.
Although the 2015 contest ended in defeat, it marked an important stage in Makinde's political evolution. He had moved from supporting established political figures to independently building a statewide political network and openly pursuing his own governorship ambition.
Makinde would eventually return to the race in 2019 as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate. On March 9, 2019, he won the Oyo State governorship election with 515,621 votes, defeating APC candidate Adebayo Adelabu, who polled 357,982 votes.
The Oyo State Government's official biography records that Makinde emerged as the PDP governorship candidate on September 29, 2018, after winning the party's primary with 2,772 votes.
Looking back at the journey, Makinde's central message is that repeated political rejection ultimately compelled him to develop an independent political identity rather than remain dependent on established political godfathers.
As he put it, “I decided to be my own leader in 2015 and pursue my Governorship ambitions on my own before it later became a reality in 2019.”
His story therefore reflects a progression from political supporter and aspiring protégé to independent candidate—and eventually to the Government House in Ibadan.
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