Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde has rejected a claim by FCT Minister Nyesom Wike that the Federal Government gave Oyo State N50bn for the upgrade of the Ibadan International Airport.
Makinde, who is also the presidential candidate of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM), addressed the claim on Tuesday while speaking at the Makinde/Daura 2027 Presidential Town Hall meeting in Katsina.
The dispute followed Wike’s appearance on TVC’s Journalists’ Hangout on Monday, where the minister said President Bola Tinubu’s administration supported the Oyo State Government with N50bn for the airport project.
Makinde gives his side of the airport funding dispute
Responding to Wike, Makinde said Oyo State did not receive the alleged N50bn from the Federal Government and maintained that the airport upgrade was being funded by the state.
Makinde said, “I want to say that claim is false. The President did not give me or Oyo State N50 billion to upgrade the Ibadan Airport. The Ibadan Airport upgrade project is being undertaken 100 per cent with the funds of Oyo State.”
The governor said he decided to address the claim after his attention was drawn to Wike’s television interview.
The project involves the upgrade of the Ladoke Akintola International Airport in Ibadan, with reports stating that Makinde’s administration began the airport upgrade in 2024.
Dispute over N50bn claim continues
The N50bn funding claim has now become another point of disagreement between Makinde and Wike, who have previously been political allies within the Peoples Democratic Party’s G5 governors’ group.
For now, Makinde maintains that the Federal Government did not provide the N50bn and that Oyo State is funding the airport upgrade itself, while the claim made by Wike remains disputed.
Watch the video below…
Seyi Makinde today debunks Wike’s claim that Tinubu gave Oyo State ₦50 billion to upgrade the airport to an international airport.
“My attention was called to Wike’s interview yesterday, where he said President Tinubu gave ₦50 billion to Oyo State to upgrade the airport to an… pic.twitter.com/oG5ocwcgSQ
— CHUKS 🍥 (@ChuksEricE) September 22, 2026
