Peter Obi’s 2023 running mate, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, has advised the African Democratic Congress (ADC), now backed by a coalition of opposition forces, to field a presidential candidate for the 2027 elections who cannot be easily defeated by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
In an interview with Trust TV, Baba-Ahmed cautioned against choosing former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as the coalition’s candidate, despite Atiku’s influential role in forming the alliance. He argued that President Bola Tinubu and the APC are already familiar with Atiku’s political strategies, having defeated him in two previous elections.
“If you bring out Atiku, they know how to work against Atiku. He is welcome to win, and if he does, we will support him. But what we need is a candidate they can’t predict — someone they don’t know how to counter. That’s how you win an election,” Baba-Ahmed emphasized.
The former senator praised Tinubu’s political patience and strategic thinking, pointing out that the president spent 16 years laying the groundwork for his eventual 2023 victory. He urged the opposition coalition to study Tinubu’s long-term political discipline.
“Any coalition that’s serious about winning in 2027 must understand the kind of power Tinubu holds. This is someone who waited and worked behind the scenes for 16 years. He even stepped aside in 2015 to support Muhammadu Buhari, a move no one in our coalition seems capable of replicating,” Baba-Ahmed said.
He questioned whether any politician within the coalition has the discipline or humility to prioritize someone else’s presidency before pursuing their own ambitions.
“With all due respect to Atiku, he has contested six times, and 2027 would be his seventh attempt. Tell me, who among us will step aside and say, ‘Let that person go first, I will come after eight years’? I haven’t seen that kind of selflessness yet,” he added.
In another recent interview, Baba-Ahmed made a case for Peter Obi’s candidacy, stating that the former Anambra State governor deserves to run for president — not vice president — in 2027. He based this on Obi’s performance in the 2023 polls, where he allegedly garnered over 10 million votes, despite claims of electoral irregularities.
“The vice presidency is a big position, and I once contested for it, but was rigged out. Still, I don’t believe Obi should settle for VP after such a strong showing. With 10 million disputed votes, he has earned the right to be a presidential candidate,” Baba-Ahmed stated.
Contrary to popular belief that only a united opposition can defeat Tinubu, Baba-Ahmed claimed that the Labour Party — without a coalition — outperformed both the APC and PDP in 2023.
“This idea that only a coalition can defeat APC is a misleading narrative. In 2023, Labour Party beat both APC and PDP without any alliance,” he asserted.
Ultimately, Baba-Ahmed stressed the need for innovation, unpredictability, and long-term planning in the opposition’s strategy, warning that simply recycling known political figures like Atiku might not be enough to overcome Tinubu’s deeply entrenched political machinery.
