Makinde offers Oyo workers N10,000 salary top-up over fuel price hike

Oyo State's Governor, Seyi Makinde, has revealed that all employees in the state will receive an extra N10,000 added to their monthly paychecks for the next three months.

The governor shared this news during an event held in the state capital, Ibadan, on Monday. He explained that this additional payment is intended to help ease the burden caused by the recent increase in fuel prices. The addition will start in April, and the governor hinted it could be extended if the economic situation doesn't improve.

“I’m happy to announce that all workers in Oyo State and the local government starting from April, at least for the first three months, will be given N10,000 in addition to their monthly salary as petrol/transportation support. All workers, everybody. It is a flat rate. Maybe it would be extended.

“Those who are not working with the Oyo State government may also benefit from it. We will handle it properly to ensure it is all-inclusive. As I approach the end of my administration, one of the things I’m particularly focused on is ensuring continuity,” he said.

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As the 2027 general elections draw closer, two Peoples Democratic Party governors, Seyi Makinde of Oyo State and Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State, recently had a meeting. They were joined by the National Leader of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Senator Seriake Dickson, and former Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso, who also ran for president in 2023 with the New Nigeria Peoples Party. This meeting comes at a time when efforts to reconcile the governors with the group led by Minister Nyesom Wike have hit a roadblock.

On Sunday, Makinde and Mohammed, who chairs the PDP Governors Forum, had a private session with Senator Seriake Dickson, representing Bayelsa West in the Senate.

Afterward, Makinde and Dickson went to Kano, where they met up with Kwankwaso and Peter Obi, who was the Labour Party's presidential candidate in 2023.

While the meeting was officially framed as part of the Eid-el-Fitr celebrations, reliable sources close to Kwankwaso spoke on the condition of anonymity, they weren’t authorised to comment publicly, and hinted that the real focus might have been early planning for the 2027 presidential race.

Following that, Jungudo Mohammed, who serves as the National Publicity Secretary for the PDP's National Caretaker Working Committee, the faction backed by Wike spoke out on Sunday. He accused the group led by Tanimu Turaki (a SAN), which is backed by the governors, of plotting to mess with the party’s upcoming national convention, which is set for March 29 and 30.

In reply to these accusations, Ini Ememobong, the National Publicity Secretary for the Turaki-backed camp, brushed off the claims as nothing more than an attempt at character assassination. He stressed that their group has always shown a commitment to bringing the party back together.

After nearly a year of internal strife, the PDP has essentially split into two opposing factions. Despite all the difficulties, the faction supported by the governors went ahead with a convention on November 16 in Ibadan, Oyo State. During this event, Turaki and other key figures were elected to the National Working Committee.