Oyo State Governor and presidential candidate of the Allied Peoples’ Movement, Seyi Makinde, has said four years would be sufficient for him to reset Nigeria if elected president in the 2027 general elections.

Makinde made the declaration on Monday at the APM North-Central town hall meeting in Lafia, Nasarawa State, where he also said the outcome of the election would be determined by Nigerians rather than political calculations, pollsters or financial strength.

“Let me say this. This 2027 election will not be determined by politics, by pollsters, or by the number of multimillionaires in your party,” he said.

“This election is not going to be determined by the number of millionaires you have in your corner, or how many billions you have to spend. This election will be determined by the people of Nigeria.”

The governor said effective governance required energy and sustained planning, arguing that his administration in Oyo State had demonstrated this through its approach to budget preparation and public consultation.

“You need a lot of energy to be able to serve and govern our people effectively, and Makinde has the energy to reset Nigeria,” he said.

He explained that his administration had commenced preparations for the 2027 budget by consulting residents across the geopolitical zones of Oyo State to identify their priorities.

Makinde said the process had been a practice of his administration for seven years, adding that it was necessary for government budgets to reflect the needs of the people.

The governor also criticised the Federal Government’s budget process, alleging that delays and inadequate planning had affected the implementation of key policies.

He cited the expansion of army divisions as an example, saying he could not identify a corresponding provision in the 2026 budget.

“They [FG] expanded army divisions to 12. I was looking at the budget for 2026. I was looking for the item in that budget relating to the expansion of those army divisions. I did not see it,” Makinde said.

“If they have it in the budget that they prepared for 2026, let them bring it out. You cannot just wake up without a plan and expand army divisions to tackle insecurity. There has to be a lot of planning that will go into this.”

Makinde also acknowledged that state governments were receiving higher allocations from the Federation Account but argued that the increased revenue had not translated into a reduction in hunger.

“Yes, they [FG] claim we [state governments] have more money. I am not arguing that. Yes, in terms of the totality, we have more money, but has it translated to fighting hunger in our society? The answer is no,” he said.

The governor said Oyo State had reduced its dependence on federal allocation after he assumed office in 2019, but alleged that the state’s dependence had risen again under the current Federal Government.

He said the state’s dependence on federal allocation stood at over 80 per cent when he took office, but was reduced to 65 per cent by 2022.

“Then, by 2023, when they [FG] came on board with their voodoo economy, the resultant effect is that today Oyo state is back to almost 80 percent dependence on federal allocation. That is their voodoo economy,” he said.

Makinde described himself as a “resetter” and said his proposed agenda could be implemented within four years.

“The reset agenda can be completed in four years. After all, we had a head of state in this country who, for 10 months, was able to end military rule and usher in the democracy we now enjoy in Nigeria,” he said.

“So, we can reset this country, reset and give Nigeria a new security architecture, reset and give Nigeria a new path for education, reset our economy utilising data, science and logic, and reset our socio-political environment in four years. That is our agenda.”

Also speaking at the event, APM vice-presidential candidate, Lawal Daura, said Nigerians were seeking political change and what he described as “tremendous” improvement.

Daura said the APM’s campaign would be based on sincerity, honesty, commitment, dedication and focus, rather than what he described as lies and deceit.

The party’s National Chairman, Yusuf Dantalle, said successive and current administrations had made efforts to address the country’s challenges but had not achieved sufficient results.

“It is not translating into development. For that reason, we can’t continue to do the same thing and expect different results. If we must get different results, we have to do something different,” Dantalle said.

He urged Nigerians to support individuals whom he said had been tested and demonstrated the capacity to move the country forward.