By Charles Adingupu
It was a beehive of activities on Thursday at the Aso Rock Villa as different interest groups took their turn to see President Bola Tinubu.
The G-5 members who became the cynosure of all eyes were part of the groups that besieged the villa to engage the President in a secret meeting.
Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State has disclosed that the G5, otherwise known as the Integrity Group, visited President Tinubu to brief him on the latest happenings and the group’s stance on fairness, equity and justice in the country.
Makinde, who was flanked by the four other members of the group who were immediate past governors, further acknowledged that nation building is a difficult task which demands constant evaluation.
The G5, according to him, will keep meeting with the President on the way forward for the country.
Addressing State House correspondents, the Oyo governor said, “Nation building is a very difficult task. You have to keep evaluating, you know what you’re doing, where you’re going. So, we have to keep seeing the President, you know, to let him know what is happening.
“The G-5, the Integrity Group, came to let the President know what we stood for: fairness, justice, and equity.”
This is the third time that Makinde would be visiting the President with some members of the group in the last one week.
In attendance at the meeting alongside Makinde were four former governors within his party. They were former Governors Nyesom Wike (Rivers), Samuel Ortom (Benue), Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia) and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu).
The current governor of Enugu State, Peter Mbah was also present.
The G5 made up of aggrieved politicians within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) kicked against the emergence of PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar in the last elections and backed the return of power to Southern Nigeria.
However after much persuasion, the aggrieved PDP members eventually endorsed the candidature of Atiku as the presidential flag bearer of the party but the condition that the then National Chairman of the party, Dr Iyorchia Ayu must resign for what they described as”equity, fairness and justice.”
