• Four Years to Transform Nigeria – Has Makinde Transformed Oyo in Almost Eight Years?

By Maroof Asudemade

Governor Seyi Makinde has made an interesting promise: if elected President in 2027, his proposed government will be a transitional administration that will not last beyond four years. The declaration raises a fundamental question about the governor’s own record in Oyo State: What has he accomplished with almost eight years in office, and how much of his development promise has translated into tangible improvements in the lives of ordinary citizens?

Makinde assumed office in May 2019 and is approaching the end of his constitutionally permitted two terms. His administration can point to few achievements in infrastructure and other sectors. A fair assessment must acknowledge these token gains.

However, governance cannot be measured by few completed projects, impressive speeches or budgetary announcements alone. It must also be measured by the quality of essential services available to the people. And this is where serious questions arise, particularly in healthcare and education.

Makinde’s administration has repeatedly highlighted investments in primary healthcare centres, hospital renovations, medical equipment and the recruitment of healthcare workers. Its own published reports, however, show that some commitments remain unfinished or are still undergoing implementation.

Meanwhile, concerns about inadequate medical personnel, equipment and the condition of public hospitals continue to feature in public debate. In 2026, the Oyo APC publicly criticised the state of healthcare delivery, citing complaints about staffing and facilities at Adeoyo State Hospital and other public hospitals. These are opposition allegations, but they underscore questions that deserve independent investigation and answers from the government.

A hospital is not transformed merely because its building has been renovated. It must have qualified personnel, functional equipment, essential medicines and the capacity to attend to patients when they need help. What does it mean to invest in healthcare if patients still struggle to obtain timely and adequate treatment in public facilities? There are viral vdeos of where patients complaining about parlous state of facilities and service in general hospitals they visited.

Education presents a similar challenge. Makinde announced plans to allocate ₦15 billion annually from the 2024 budget for infrastructure renewal in public primary and secondary schools. In his 2025 budget presentation, he also acknowledged the need to repair dilapidated secondary schools and improve educational infrastructure.

These commitments are significant, but the ultimate test is what pupils and teachers experience in their classrooms. Where schools still have deteriorating buildings, inadequate furniture and insufficient learning materials, government must demonstrate how its spending is closing those gaps. The recruitment of teachers is welcome, but recruitment announcements must translate into teachers being posted to schools where they are needed.

After almost eight years, the question is no longer simply how much the government has budgeted for education. It is how much the quality of learning has improved across the state.

Makinde now speaks confidently about what a four-year presidential administration can achieve. Yet, after almost eight years as governor, significant questions remain about the delivery of basic healthcare and education across Oyo State. The issue is not whether his administration has accomplished anything. It has. The issue is whether its achievements match the expectations created by its promises and the resources available to it.

If four years is enough for Makinde to promise a national transformation, the people of Oyo State are already disillusioned about the almost almost eight years of his leadership. The governor owes the people a clear account of what has been achieved, what remains unfinished and why critical gaps persist in sectors that directly affect their daily lives.

Political promises are easy to make. Delivering functional hospitals, properly equipped schools and dependable public services is the harder task. As Makinde looks beyond Oyo State towards national politics, his below par record at home confirms that he lacks the capacity and competence to fly in a complex space like Nigeria. Before asking Nigerians to trust his four-year promise, Makinde should be told that the nearly eight years of his leadership have delivered tokenism in Oyo State.