Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, running mate to Peter Obi in the 2023 presidential election, has warned the African Democratic Congress (ADC) not to field Atiku Abubakar in the 2027 presidential election, saying the former vice president is too predictable and easy for the ruling APC to defeat.
Speaking during an interview with Trust TV at the weekend, Baba-Ahmed warned against fielding familiar faces like former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who he said APC has defeated twice and understands too well.
“If you bring out Atiku, they know how to work against Atiku, and he is welcome to win, if he wins we will support him,” he said. “You need that candidate they can’t understand, they don’t know where to catch, that is how to win an election.”
While acknowledging Atiku’s major role in forming the opposition coalition, Baba-Ahmed said any serious movement must recognise the political strength of President Bola Tinubu, who spent 16 years building his path to power.
“Any coalition that is coming together has to realise how powerful this individual called Tinubu is.
“Somebody who schemed for 16 years to take it one day. He has done what nobody has done, and I don’t see among our own coalition now somebody who is able to plan or scheme for 16 years,” he said.
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He continued: “With due respect to Atiku, Atiku consistently contested, all the last six, this will be the seventh one without let or hinderance.
“Tell me who from across the divide would stand up and say it must be that other individual that must be the president and I will take over from him after eight years. I’m yet to see that person.”
Baba-Ahmed also hinted at internal competition within the coalition, noting that most political actors are more concerned with their own ambitions than long-term sacrifices.
In a separate interview, he expressed strong support for Peter Obi, urging the coalition not to offer him a vice-presidential slot again.
“The position of VP is very big. Anyway, I wanted to be, and I was rigged out. But I think Peter Obi should not be a VP, having gotten a disputed 10 million votes,” he said.
He further argued that the belief that only a coalition can defeat the APC is not supported by recent experience, pointing to Labour Party’s performance in the last presidential election.
“It’s all about a narrative that was sold out to Nigeria very quickly, that to defeat Tinubu, it has to be a coalition,” he said. “Coalition is good, but in 2023 we defeated APC, PDP. There was no coalition in Labour Party.”