Public Asset Declaration: Promise Made, Method Questioned

Governor Seyi Makinde fulfilled his campaign promise to declare his assets publicly on July 15, 2019, shortly after assuming office on May 29, 2019. 

At the Code of Conduct Bureau office in Ibadan, he released details of his asset declaration form (OYSE/2019/001) showing a net worth of approximately N48.15 billion in companies, N2.62 billion in properties (including nine buildings in Nigeria, two in the United States, and one in South Africa), and cash holdings of N234.7 million as of May 28, 2019.

However, the manner of declaration drew scrutiny from anti-corruption advocates. Rather than releasing the actual asset declaration document itself, Makinde's media aide issued details through a press statement, a method criticized by civil society groups as falling short of genuine public accountability. 

A 2021 analysis noted that while predecessors like former President Umar Yar'Adua and human rights expert Chidi Odinkalu had published actual copies of their declarations for public verification, Makinde's approach mirrored the contested style employed by President Muhammadu Buhari. 

At the end of his first term in May 2023, Makinde declared that his net worth had declined by 10–12 percent, though without releasing the updated declaration document publicly.