‘Am I not Nigerian’? – Baba-Ahmed faults reactions to his ‘criticism’ of Peter Obi - Vanguard News

Peter Obi and Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed during the 2023 presidential campaign.

Former Labour Party vice-presidential candidate, Datti Baba-Ahmed, has disagreed with reactions to his recent criticism of Peter Obi, saying Nigerians focused on his reference to the former Anambra State governor rather than the broader argument he was making about the 2027 presidential election.

In a recent interview with Seun Okinbaloye, Baba-Ahmed had stirred controversy after saying none of the leading contenders for the 2027 presidency, including Obi, whom he deputised in the 2023 election, had the capacity to fix Nigeria.

However, speaking on Trust TV’s Daily Politics, Baba-Ahmed said his response mentioning Obi came while he was explaining his call for President Bola Tinubu to prepare to hand over power and ensure a level playing field for all presidential contenders.

He said the discussion had focused on the electoral prospects of Tinubu and former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar before the interviewer asked whether his position also applied to Obi.

“Tinubu does not have enough votes to win, if Atiku is the leading challenger, Atiku does not have who to declare him. Do you now see the problem?” Baba-Ahmed said.

He explained that his position was based on fairness and that he was not campaigning for Atiku, stressing that he was not a member of Atiku’s political party.

“I said it is just equity, give a level playing ground to all of them. That’s what happened. Seun now added, including Peter Obi?” he said.

According to Baba-Ahmed, he responded in the affirmative because of time constraints during the interview, but Nigerians subsequently focused on that particular response.

“Now, because of time and stress and all that, it was on Friday and to get the question out of the way, I said, ‘Yes, including Peter Obi’ and then, that is what Nigerians took,” he said.

The former Labour Party presidential running mate also questioned why his criticism of Obi had generated such strong reactions, arguing that political figures should be free to change political platforms.

“Now, it is okay for Peter Obi to leave Atiku in 2022, go to another party, share the votes and lose it but it is not okay for anybody to leave Peter Obi. What kind of country are we in? Am I not a Nigerian?” Baba-Ahmed asked.

He recalled his disagreement with Obi’s decision to leave the Labour Party for the African Democratic Congress (ADC), saying he had advised him against the move.

“We were in Labour Party and he had been cancelled as the presidential candidate since 2024. I did everything to keep Peter Obi in, he moved out to ADC and I told him, it is not a place for you,” he said.

Baba-Ahmed maintained that his concerns about Obi’s political move had subsequently been vindicated, while expressing frustration that his broader arguments on democracy and political principles were being overlooked.

“I went there to discuss democracy, to discuss the first republic, I went there and brought solid principles, solid arguments, put forward. It didn’t matter to anybody. That is how low political discussions have become,” he said.

Comments expressed here do not reflect the opinions of Vanguard newspapers or any employee thereof.