Former Ekiti State governor, Ayodele Fayose, has accused Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State of orchestrating the recent school kidnapping to blackmail President Bola Tinubu.

Fayose while featuring on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday, said: “Let me branch to Oyo State, before you get to the president in the hierarchy of leadership and governance, there is local government, there is state, state has security votes and there are people that are supposed to be working.

“In Oyo State, I strongly believe though I might be wrong but this sometimes might be orchestrated. The governor of Oyo State had his nomination and that of his candidates in the face of this abduction.

“He did not take any action, no steps were taken, it was after those nominations that he went to the families to visit them

“I sometimes believe that the abduction at Oyo School was orchestrated by the Oyo State Government to blackmail President Tinubu.”

Some school children and teachers were kidnapped by unknown gunmen in some local governments in Oyo State over two weeks ago.

Tinubu, last weekend, despatched a high powered delegation to the affected areas who promised to ensure the safe return of the abducted school children. The delegation was led by the Chief of Staff to the President, Hon Femi Gbajabiamila.

Prince Adewole Adebayo, the presidential candidate of Social Democratic Party (SDP) for the 2027 general election, has dismissed claims of economic progress under President Bola Tinubu, insisting that the administration’s celebrated macroeconomic gains have failed to translate into improved living conditions for ordinary Nigerians.

Speaking during a television interview to mark the third anniversary of the Tinubu administration, he argued that the government’s economic performance should be judged by the realities facing citizens rather than official statistics.

According to him, only those in government could claim to be better off today, while the majority of Nigerians continue to struggle with rising living costs, declining purchasing power, unemployment and worsening poverty.

“No one’s life is better off except those who are in government,” Adebayo said. “When all economic policies crystallise, they are reflected in what people pay for food, rent, transportation, healthcare and education. In all of these objective indicators, no one’s life is better off than before.”

He faulted attempts by government officials to present positive economic indicators as evidence of success, arguing that an economy that is genuinely improving would not require extensive official explanations to convince citizens.

“The economy belongs to all of us. If it is working, everybody will know it is working. Farmers, industrialists, traders, workers and consumers will feel it,” he said.

He also wondered why the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), which has governed Nigeria since 2015, continues to attribute current economic challenges to inherited problems.

He maintained that the economic conditions inherited by Tinubu in 2023 were themselves products of eight years of APC governance, making it difficult for the party to shift responsibility elsewhere.

“The same  political party and largely the same political actors produced the situation they now describe as terrible. Nigerians voted for them twice and those conditions emerged under their watch,” he said.

The Ondo prince further accused the administration of creating what he described as an “illusion of progress” through currency devaluation and heavy borrowing.

According to him, increases in government revenue and foreign reserves, often cited by officials, do not reflect genuine economic growth but are largely the consequences of naira depreciation and debt accumulation.

“What they suffer from is what economists call the illusion of money. The devaluation of the naira creates the appearance that more money is coming in, but the reality is that the money has lost purchasing power,” he stated.

He argued that the government’s macroeconomic indicators are “faulty and incorrect” because they do not correspond with the realities experienced by households and businesses.

He noted that the widening gap between official economic statistics and citizens’ living standards demonstrates that the government’s policies are not producing meaningful results.

He cited rising unemployment, increasing poverty levels and declining purchasing power despite official reports of GDP growth and moderating inflation.

“The average Nigerian wants to know whether he can buy food tomorrow. That is the true test of economic policy,” he said.

He also blamed the administration’s foreign exchange policies for worsening the financial position of state governments and businesses, arguing that projects awarded before the naira devaluation had become significantly more expensive to execute.

He noted that most state governors belong to the APC and are implementing policies aligned with those of the Federal Government, making it difficult to separate state-level outcomes from federal economic decisions.

He further criticised the government’s borrowing strategy, claiming that much of the growth recorded in Nigeria’s foreign reserves is linked to loans rather than productive economic expansion.

“They have engaged in heavy borrowing since coming into office, and a significant portion of the reserves being celebrated is already spoken for,” he said.

He also questioned the credibility of official inflation figures, arguing that they failed to capture the realities of fuel prices, transportation costs and the broader cost-of-living pressures confronting Nigerians.

He maintained that until economic policies result in tangible improvements in the daily lives of citizens, claims of success by the administration would remain disconnected from reality.

“The president and the country are better served by an honest assessment of the economy than by defensive arguments that do not reflect what Nigerians are experiencing,” he submitted.

The Tanimu Turaki-led PDP, on Saturday, changed the venue of its convention and briskly ratified former President Goodluck Jonathan as its presidential candidate for the 2027 general election.

The move was after the group was barred by the police from accessing the A Class Hotel in Abuja, initially rented for its convention.

The event, which did not last more than 20 minutes, had an ally of Jonathan, Fred Agbedi, who received the certificate on behalf of the former president.

Other dignitaries present at the event included Prof Jerry Gana, Tanimu Turaki, Adolphus Wabara, and several others who are loyal to Turaki.

The police had used several of their vans to completely block the two access roads leading off from the Wuse and Maitama axis, into the premises of the previously rented event centre.

The blockage deprived access to both PDP members loyal to Turaki and other road users who have nothing to do with the planned convention.

The development comes following Friday’s warning to hotels and event centres by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, not to allow illegal political parties or organisations to use their resources for the sake of security in the FCT.

In response, the PDP, in a statement, accused Wike of attempting to halt its planned event.

According to the statement, the party said the management of A Class Event Centre informed it that pressure was being mounted on the venue to stop the gathering from taking place.

The PDP said it had already paid for the venue and fulfilled all conditions required for the programme.

The party also said security agencies had been notified of the convention scheduled for Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Wuse 2, Abuja.

The party insisted that the convention would proceed despite what it described as intimidation.

Meanwhile, a former Minister of Information, Prof. Jerry Gana, received the PDP Certificate of Return on behalf of former President Jonathan at the party’s ‘National Convention’ in Abuja.

The presentation by the PDP Interim National Working Committee led Turaki thrust Jonathan back into the political spotlight amid growing interest in the opposition’s plans ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

Gana received the certificate before party leaders, delegates, former ministers, state officials, and supporters gathered at the convention venue in Area 10, Garki, Abuja.

He later addressed party supporters and journalists shortly after the presentation.