Melaye urges Makinde to attend tribunal and show support for Atiku

It is widely believed that the governor, a member of the PDP, supported the campaign of President Bola Tinubu, who ran on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Dino Melaye, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for governor of Kogi State, has challenged Seyi Makinde, the governor of Oyo State, to a show of support for PDP presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar at the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal.

It is widely believed that the governor, a member of the PDP, supported the campaign of President Bola Tinubu, who ran on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Makinde had joined a group of five PDP governors known as the G5 in the run-up to the February 25 presidential election because he was dissatisfied with Atiku’s victory over a southerner in the party’s primary.

In response to the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) declaration of Tinubu as the victor, Atiku and others have lodged petitions with the tribunal contesting Tinubu’s victory.

On Saturday, at a retreat for PDP elected officials conducted in Bauchi State, the governor of Oyo stated, “We went through a grueling election, and whether we want to acknowledge it or not, we had issues within the party during the election, but you know what?

“The healing process must commence, and it will commence immediately. We must concentrate on things that unite us. Urgently, we must adopt a forward-looking perspective.”

During the event’s question-and-answer segment, Melaye redirected the governor’s comments to himself.

Melaye argued that if Makinde supported Atiku’s claim that the election process was compromised, it would “indicate that the healing has truly begun.”

“I’d like to begin by expressing my appreciation for Governor Seyi Makinde’s remarks this morning, particularly where he said, ‘Healing begins now,’” he said.

“I would be pleased if between now, next week, and two weeks, when we’ll be at the tribunal, Governor Seyi Makinde walked into the venue and sat down to support the party and our candidate,” he continued.

According to the PDP candidate for Kogi, this would demonstrate to Nigerians that the cleansing process has begun and demonstrate to the world that the PDP is unified.