FG Didn’t Fund Ibadan Airport With N50bn — Makinde
Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has rejected a claim by Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, that the Federal Government provided N50 billion to support the upgrade of the Ibadan International Airport.
Wike reportedly made the claim during an appearance on TVC’s Journalists’ Hangout on Monday, saying the Bola Tinubu administration provided the money to support Makinde’s plan to transform the airport into an international facility.
Makinde responded on Tuesday while speaking at the Makinde/Daura 2027 Presidential Town Hall meeting in Katsina, where he described the claim as false.
According to the governor, neither he nor the Oyo State Government received N50 billion from the Federal Government for the airport project.
“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.”
Makinde’s statement was also reported by Channels Television and TheCable, which said the governor maintained that the airport upgrade was being financed entirely by Oyo State.
Makinde’s media aide, Sulaimon Olanrewaju, also disputed Wike’s account, saying the Federal Government’s approval for the airport project was granted on the basis that the upgrade would come at no cost to the Federal Government.
Olanrewaju said the Oyo State Government had therefore financed the transformation of the facility, including work on the runway, airfield lighting and navigational systems, apron improvements, Airport Road and the ongoing international terminal project.
The airport upgrade was flagged off by Makinde in September 2024 at an initial reported cost of about N41 billion. The domestic terminal upgrade was completed in October 2025, while work on the international terminal and related facilities has continued.
The disagreement centres specifically on whether the Federal Government provided N50 billion for the project.
Wike said the Tinubu administration had made the money available to Makinde as part of its support for the Oyo governor. Makinde, however, says no such federal funding was received and maintains that the state is financing the airport upgrade itself.
As of the latest reports, the two sides have offered conflicting accounts of the alleged N50 billion funding. Publicly available reports cited in the coverage do not establish that the Federal Government transferred the claimed N50 billion to Oyo State.
The airport funding dispute came during Makinde’s wider political engagement in Katsina as part of his activities ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
At the meeting, the governor presented his “Reset Nigeria Agenda”, outlining positions on the economy, education, security and the devolution of some responsibilities to state governments. Channels Television reported that he also advocated greater state involvement in mining while retaining federal regulatory oversight.
Makinde is the presidential candidate of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) for the 2027 election. Wike, meanwhile, is a serving minister in the Tinubu administration. Their disagreement over the Ibadan airport funding comes against the backdrop of Nigeria’s increasingly active political realignment ahead of the 2027 polls.
