Former Vice Presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Dr. Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, has declared that he will support Peter Obi to secure the Labour Party ticket if the former Anambra State Governor fails to clinch the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential ticket ahead of the 2027 general elections.
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Baba-Ahmed made the disclosure on Sunday during an interview on Daily Trust TV, where he spoke about his relationship with Obi, his decision to remain in the Labour Party, and his political future.
The former running mate revealed that Peter Obi did not invite him to join the ADC, noting that people who know him would not approach him with certain propositions.
“His Excellency Peter Obi did not invite me to join him in ADC. Because everyone knows me, there are certain things you’d rather not approach me with. People know me, even while I was in parliament,” he said.
Despite their different political paths, Baba-Ahmed emphasised that his personal relationship with Obi remains solid.
“Our personal relationships are solid. Only on the 12th, he attended the wedding in my house, in person. Where I have much, much, much respect for Peter Obi,” he stated.
Baba-Ahmed made a passionate appeal to Obi, promising to work for him if he fails to secure the ADC ticket.
“If he doesn’t get the ADC ticket, come back please. I will work for you and try to get Peter Obi the ticket in Labour. I will try and mend the ways between him and whoever are not in good terms with him,” he said.
Reflecting on his decision to join Obi’s presidential campaign in 2023, Baba-Ahmed said he was motivated by the desire to answer a burning question about whether a South-easterner could be elected president of Nigeria.
“When I joined in 2023, I saw us put paid to a certain burning question. Can a South-easterner, for God’s sake, be elected? Can he even be president, Federal Republic of Nigeria? That’s the kind of person I am. Something challenging, something idealistic. I said, ‘Yes,'” he explained.
He added: “I supported Peter Obi’s presidency with all my heart, with all my mind. That was 2023. This is 2027.”
Speaking on the issue of zoning ahead of the 2027 elections, Baba-Ahmed argued that a northerner can be elected president in 2027, noting that the precedent was set by the South.
“Baba Obasanjo handed over in 2007, being a southerner, to late Umaru Yar’Adua, a northerner. In 2011, President Goodluck Jonathan, a southerner, was elected president after four years. And Peter Obi was part of the machinery of Goodluck Jonathan,” he recalled.
“Now, in 2023, late Baba Buhari handed over to Bola Ahmed Tinubu. 2027, a northerner can be elected. And the North didn’t start it. The South started it,” he stated.
However, he clarified that he speaks as a Nigerian, not based on regional sentiments.
“I am just a Nigerian. And I’m speaking as one, because when it was time to work for the Southeast, when it was time to work for the South, I did. My records are there to stand for it,” he said.
Responding to concerns that he may be politically isolated without Obi and the Obidient movement, Baba-Ahmed insisted he can survive on his own.
“I survived, I did well, before I met Peter Obi. I won elections before I met Peter Obi. I have never lost an election in my life. Any election that I got the ticket to contest, I have never lost an election,” he declared.
On the suggestion that he was “swimming against the tide,” he responded: “Swimming against the tide, what is wrong with that? Do you want the tide to carry you? Of course not. I’m not one of those lazy politicians who want to sit down and follow godfathers and use sentiments to achieve the offices they want.”
Baba-Ahmed expressed confidence that he could defeat the All Progressives Congress (APC) in a fair contest.
“APC is not a tide. Because if I were to face APC without the support of the standard thing — INEC doing what they do, DSS doing what they do, and police doing what they do — without that, I will beat APC before 12 noon,” he said.
He criticised the APC for its handling of Nigeria’s security challenges over the past 12 years.
“These are people who have not secured Nigeria in 12 years. And you think Nigerians are stupid? They’re not, we’re not,” he concluded.
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