Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, the Labour Party’s vice-presidential candidate in the 2023 presidential election, has said none of President Bola Tinubu’s major opponents in the 2027 election has the capacity to improve Nigeria.
Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, is seeking a second term, with Peter Obi of the Nigeria Democratic Congress and former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress emerging as his major challengers.
Speaking on the MicOn Podcast on Saturday, Baba-Ahmed, who was Obi’s running mate in 2023, said the leading contenders had been part of the political establishment responsible for Nigeria’s current condition.
“I will simply advise uncle(Tinubu) to please prepare to hand over and move away, but not to the people contesting against him,” he said.
“Because none of them will improve Nigeria. All those people contesting against him too were all in bed together at some point or another — including Peter Obi. At some point, he was in PDP.”
Baba-Ahmed said he was advocating a “new Nigeria”, arguing that he remained the only politician among the major contenders who had never belonged to a ruling party.
“Tell me one politician who has never been in a ruling party. I’m the one. Have I ever been in a ruling party?” he said.
The former lawmaker explained that although he was once a member of the Congress for Progressive Change, he left the party before its merger with other parties that produced the APC.
“I have never been in a ruling party. When I was in CPC, it was a little opposition party,” he said.
“I never had an APC membership card.”
Baba-Ahmed also commented on the controversy surrounding Tinubu’s records in the United States, questioning Atiku’s renewed focus on the issue.
He queried why Atiku was “at the forefront of tormenting” Tinubu over his records despite having previously remained silent on the matter.
The former vice-presidential candidate said Tinubu had been given the opportunity to lead Nigeria but should not seek to prolong his stay in office.
Baba-Ahmed accused the president of weakening Nigeria’s political parties and said Tinubu had “qualified himself for divine intervention.”
“All he did in three years was to destroy political parties,” he said.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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