Why Obi May Not Get ADC Presidential Ticket – Datti

Why Obi May Not Get ADC Presidential Ticket – Datti

Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, former vice-presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), has cast doubt on Peter Obi’s chances of clinching the presidential ticket of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), citing entrenched interests and unresolved ambitions within the emerging coalition.

In this interview on Trust TV, Datti explains why he chose to remain in the LP despite Obi’s exit, insists that Obi never invited him to join the ADC, and says the former Anambra State governor is free to return to the Labour Party if denied the ADC ticket.

He also dismisses claims that his political relevance or survival is tied to Obi, arguing that his career predates and transcends any single political figure.

Critics argue that Peter Obi was the Labour Party’s major asset in 2023 and that without him the party is no longer relevant.

Don’t drag me into those kinds of arguments, only to later accuse me of talking about individuals. What you are repeating is the standard narrative from social media and the airwaves. In this day and age, those narratives are often not accurate.

For instance, I clearly announced that it is not yet time for me to declare any ambition. It was in writing. Yet people still claimed I had declared my intention to contest the presidency. That is not true.

Last week, the former presidential candidate left our party. The only reason I am here today is to tell the world that I remain in the Labour Party. I am not convinced by the arguments advanced for leaving the party.

Labour Party existed before Peter Obi. It produced governors before him. Yes, Peter Obi came with massive South East support, North Central backing and Christian support in the North. That mattered. But in life, you benefit from the efforts of others, just as others benefit from yours. If you join a party tomorrow, at the very least, you bring along your immediate supporters.

Are you and Peter Obi still on the same page? Are you communicating, and did he invite you to join him in the ADC?

Peter Obi did not invite me to join him in the ADC. People know me; there are certain things you would rather not approach me with. Our personal relationship remains solid. On the 12th, he attended a wedding in my house, in person.

I have immense respect for Peter Obi. If he does not get the ADC ticket and decides to return, I will work for him and try to secure the Labour Party ticket for him. I will also try to mend fences between him and anyone he is not on good terms with.

I supported Peter Obi’s presidential ambition with all my heart and mind because, at that time, it was the right thing to do. In 2027, a northerner can be elected. The North did not start this; the South did.

Q: Has Obi’s move to the ADC made you reconsider the party as a possible alternative?

A: Almost everyone in the ADC today, except Peter Obi, are people who helped establish the APC that is misruling Nigeria. Why should I walk into that trap again?

There are individuals I respect greatly, Atiku Abubakar, for instance. Amaechi is a fighter, a lion, an achiever. With the right environment and allies, he can do well. But aside from Obi, the ADC is made up of the same APC actors of 2015.

They do not have a Buhari. They do not have a Tinubu, who was focused, determined, resourced and experienced. They also do not have a Jonathan figure. These three factors alone are enough for me to stay away.

Most importantly, these are the people who created the APC dragon that is destroying Nigeria today. Nothing has fundamentally changed about them. One of them is in prison.

If Nigerians are faced with choosing between two evils, how do you see it?

The ADC is a lesser evil than the APC. If Tinubu were to return as president, may God forbid, I am truly sorry for what would happen to Nigeria.

If Peter Obi were to call today and ask you to join him in the ADC, what would you tell him?
With due respect, I would decline. When he ought to have invited me, he did not. We only met at the sole conference I attended, and that was the day I hoped to be convinced. I was not. Even then, I shared my reservations with him.

But this is a hypothetical question. Let Peter Obi first secure the ADC ticket. You saw who went to pick him up; you know what I mean. At that high table in Enugu, there was one person who dressed differently, sitting to the right. I do not need to mention his name. He is a master politician—the one who led Peter Obi into the ADC. I wish my boss, Peter Obi, well in the hands of such people. Let him get the ticket.

In 2018, I went to Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and laid out my reasons. After about an hour, he asked me, “Do you want to be president?” I said, by God’s grace. He asked, “In the PDP?” I said, by Allah’s will. He told me, “Go and get the ticket and come back.” He knew I would not come back. He knew I would not get the ticket. He is a master politician. So now, I say to Peter Obi: go and get the ticket and come back.

If they are holding him responsible for denying them victory in 2023, remember there was no ADC of this nature then. Atiku was in the PDP and is now in the ADC. Others were also there. Do you think they have forgotten?

Peter Obi was Atiku’s running mate, left, picked the Labour Party ticket and split the votes, as they see it. Now, after 2023, after denying Atiku his 34-year ambition, he returns. When I was doing my NYSC, Baba Waziri was already an aspirant. In 2018, we contested primaries together. In 2023, I was a vice-presidential candidate.

God knows what 2027 will bring. And now Peter Obi comes to say it is still zoned to the South and should be left there for him to get the ticket. Do you think they will accept that? Just this morning, Atiku said he is not stepping down for anyone.

What does your instinct tell you about what will happen in the ADC?

I think it is very unlikely that Peter Obi will secure the ticket. If he does, I will be happy for him.

What about a vice-presidential slot? Should he accept it if offered?

It is not about what I think. He has said he will not accept it. He has said he did not travel the world to learn how to be president only to return home to run as a vice-presidential candidate.

You asked why I will not go to the ADC, and you have helped me answer it. Atiku will not accept a vice-presidential slot. Amaechi may not accept it. Peter Obi will not accept it. All of them must win.

In 2015, they had the late Muhammadu Buhari. They also had Bola Tinubu, who told everyone: if you are joining us, be ready for Buhari to win. They supported him in the primaries, took power and Tinubu executed a 16-year master plan, something no other Nigerian politician has been able to do. I am not praising him. I have said it before on your programme: Tinubu achieved what others could not.

Are you worried about the growing strength of the APC, or do its rising numbers not concern you?
The APC is not, at this point, a domineering party. Its numbers do not scare me, and they should not scare anyone.

For now, what is needed is for institutions to sheath their swords. Come February 2027, if elections hold then, if INEC, the DSS and the police sheath their swords and refuse to assist rigging, the APC will be defeated before noon, whether the candidate is Atiku, Obi, myself or anyone else.

Some consider the Labour Party a sinking ship. That is why Peter Obi’s exit in late December last year did not come as a surprise to many. Why didn’t you jump ship as well?

There is no single political party in Nigeria today that does not have problems. Tell me one. The APC started with Ganduje. Then you see ministers’ resignation letters being read out, signed and dated; others have their briefs and key assignments withdrawn.

The PDP is on its deathbed. The ADC has one of its major promoters in prison today and faces many landmines ahead. Any party that shows promise will be attacked.

So it is not as if we have choices. We are not going to run away and give up simply because someone’s survival strategy is to destroy all political parties.

But aren’t some political parties safer than others?
The Labour Party is safe. It is where I found myself and where I chose to promote national unity. I wanted a South Easterner to be elected, and that happened in 2023. So it is not about the safety of a party; it is about its promise.

You have to pay a price. You must make efforts to stabilise the party. I called on Obi and his supporters to reconcile before they left. That was part of stability. Even now, I have announced that I will continue reconciliation efforts within the party.

Some say the risk-to-reward ratio of staying in the Labour Party without Obi does not favour you. How do you respond?

I did well before I met Peter Obi. I won elections before I met him. I have never lost an election in my life. What is wrong with swimming against the tide?

I am not one of those lazy politicians who rely on godfathers and sentiments to gain office, only to do nothing for the people. I will work. I will struggle. If swimming against the tide is required, I am prepared for it.

And what is this so-called tide? The APC is not a tide. Without the support of compromised institutions—INEC doing what it does, the DSS doing what it does, and the police doing what they do—I would defeat the APC before noon. These are people who have failed to secure Nigeria for 12 years. Nigerians are not stupid. We are not.