Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde and the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Senator Sharafadeen Alli, have exchanged sharp criticisms over their professional backgrounds and the performance of key state projects, intensifying early political sparring ahead of the 2027 governorship election.
The latest round of accusations started after Makinde publicly questioned Alli’s experience as a practising lawyer. Speaking on Friday while defending his administration’s record and the qualifications of his cabinet members, the governor, who is also the presidential candidate of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), declared: “I am an engineer, a fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers.”
He went further: “If you like, go and vote for someone who claimed to be a lawyer but has never entered a courtroom. Let him mention any case he has handled.” Makinde described governance as a serious responsibility that affects the destinies of millions of residents and challenged his opponents to showcase their achievements.
In a swift response on Saturday, Bisi Oladele, Director of Media and Publicity of the Senator Sharafadeen Alli Campaign Organisation, rejected the governor’s criticism of Alli’s legal career and turned the spotlight on Makinde’s record as an electrical engineer.
The campaign alleged that streetlights installed under the Makinde administration—said to have cost about ₦400 billion—are being powered by diesel generators. “It is a tragic irony that Governor Makinde, who studied electrical engineering, cannot devise a sustainable electricity solution for the streetlights installed with about N400 billion of state funds by his government,” Oladele stated.
The group further claimed that the use of generators is expensive and environmentally damaging, questioned the removal of solar infrastructure and electricity poles put in place by the previous administration, and alleged that some streetlight components have become dysfunctional due to load-shedding.
These figures and claims could not be independently verified.
A media aide to the governor defended the use of generators, attributing it to the unreliable national grid supply. The aide also challenged Alli—whose party controls the federal government—to take his electricity concerns to the centre.
The Alli campaign also criticised the renovation of the Lekan Salami Stadium in Adamasingba, Ibadan. Oladele alleged that despite spending over ₦5 billion on the project, which was completed with fanfare in 2021, the facility failed to meet requirements for hosting a continental fixture involving Shooting Stars Sports Club. He questioned the quality of the renovation and why the club had to relocate a home match to Abeokuta, Ogun State, during its 2026/27 CAF Confederation Cup campaign.
The Makinde administration has maintained that the stadium has hosted major football events and that further work is ongoing to meet international standards.
On the legal practice dispute, the APC candidate’s camp rejected Makinde’s assertion that Alli had never practised law. Oyo-based media reports cited the campaign as stating that Alli began his legal career during his National Youth Service Corps programme in 1987 at A. E. Enumah & Associates in Nnewi, Anambra State.
The exchange underscores the rising political temperature in Oyo State as both sides dig into each other’s records more than a year before the next governorship contest.