Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State has said he misses the leadership style of former Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, recalling moments when Osinbajo’s decisions shaped critical policies during his early days in office.
Makinde made the remark on Saturday in Ibadan at the 60th birthday celebration of Pastor Samson Ajetomobi, President of The Men of Issachar Vision Incorporated (MIV) and Overseer of the Redemption Faith Churches, an event attended by Osinbajo.
“Sir, I personally miss you in that position,” Makinde said, referring to Osinbajo’s tenure as vice-president. “A lot of people may not know why things are not really the same. It’s not a political talk because I’m not on that podium.”
The governor reflected on the COVID-19 period, describing how Osinbajo’s intervention influenced his decision not to impose a total lockdown in Oyo State.
“I remember I was barely seven months into the position of the governor of Oyo state… and we had a crisis in the country,” he said.
“There was Covid… and they came in and said we should all go back and lock down our state.
“So, for Oyo state people, why I did not lock down during Covid was because of his decision.”
Makinde also drew a comparison between that experience and the current administration’s approach to governance, criticising President Bola Tinubu’s handling of the controversial tax reform bill.
“But we had the same situation in this dispensation; it was the tax bill, and we said, ‘Look, bring the tax bill; bring it back; let us all have an opportunity to look dispassionately at it,’ but you cannot speak truth to power in this dispensation; the tax bill will go ahead,” he said.
The Oyo governor has consistently opposed the tax reforms introduced by the Tinubu administration. In September, he refused to assent to the bill after it was passed by the Oyo State House of Assembly, arguing that it would worsen the hardship faced by ordinary Nigerians amid the country’s economic challenges.
