The PDP’s 2026 Ekiti governorship candidate, Wole Oluyede, has urged Nigerians to make the 2027 presidential election a referendum on performance, policy direction and continuity rather than sentiment.
The Peoples Democratic Party chieftain and convener of the Oluyede Progressive Alliance for Renewed Hope Agenda made the call in a statement made available in Ado-Ekiti on Sunday.
Oluyede urged Nigerians to assess President Bola Tinubu’s administration based on its economic reforms, infrastructure projects and other policies before deciding whether to renew the President’s mandate.
He argued that abandoning long-term projects and reforms midway could undermine their potential benefits, saying Nigeria needed policy consistency to translate current investments into measurable improvements in citizens’ lives.
“The 2027 presidential election should not be a referendum on sentiment. It should be a referendum on direction, performance and continuity,” Oluyede said.
He urged Nigerians to consider whether they wanted to continue building on existing policies or return to what he described as a cycle of “starting all over again.”
The position represents a continuation of Oluyede’s recent political realignment.
After contesting the June 20, 2026 Ekiti governorship election on the PDP platform, he initially rejected the result declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission, which returned incumbent Governor Biodun Oyebanji of the All Progressives Congress with 319,224 votes against Oluyede’s 40,543.
Oluyede later withdrew his legal challenge and publicly backed Tinubu’s re-election bid, saying his decision was guided by statesmanship and national interest.
He has since established the Oluyede Progressive Alliance for Renewed Hope Agenda as a platform to mobilise support for Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
In his latest statement, Oluyede highlighted major federal infrastructure projects, including the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, Sokoto-Badagry Super Highway, Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano Road and East-West Road.
The Federal Government has identified the projects as part of its infrastructure drive, with President Tinubu saying in his May 2026 third-anniversary address that more than 2,700 kilometres of highways and major roads were under construction, reconstruction or rehabilitation.
Oluyede said the significance of such projects should be measured not merely by kilometres of roads constructed but by their potential economic impact.
“A road is not just a road. It is an economic corridor. It connects farmers to markets, manufacturers to consumers, workers to opportunities and communities to the wider national economy,” he said.
He nevertheless called for stronger maintenance systems, transparency in project execution and strict enforcement of construction standards.
The PDP chieftain said the next phase of the administration should focus on translating macroeconomic reforms and infrastructure spending into improvements in household welfare.
He listed job creation, food security, healthcare, education, electricity, transportation and support for small and medium-sized businesses among the areas requiring sustained attention.
Oluyede said Nigerians should demand accountability and correction of government shortcomings but argued that existing reforms should not be discarded simply because they have imposed difficult adjustments.
“Let us demand accountability, but let us also recognise progress where we see it,” he said, calling for the consolidation of policies he believes can produce long-term national development.
