Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, the 2023 Labour Party vice presidential candidate, has expressed his willingness to work with whoever emerges as the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate in the 2027 elections, provided the primary election is credible and transparent.
He disclosed this while featuring on Arise Television’s Prime Time programme on Thursday night.
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He emphasised the importance of a clean primary process, stating, “I need to see a very clean and transparent primary is taking place, will that happen I don’t know.”
Datti Baba-Ahmed, who attended the ADC coalition launch, clarified that he remains a committed member of the Labour Party and has not defected.
“I attended the coalition’s meetings out of national interest. But I am still very much a Labour Party chieftain,” he said.
He also predicted the current role of ex-Kaduna governor Nasir El-Rufai in the coalition two years ago, sharing this prediction with former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi.
“Two names, two years ago. I had predicted that El-Rufai was headed this way and there are many correct calculations that I did that have come true,” Baba-Ahmed revealed.
Baba-Ahmed believes Peter Obi should be the ADC presidential candidate, citing his strong performance in the 2023 election.
He advised Obi not to be a VP for “having gotten a disputed 10 million votes”, emphasising latter’s electoral strength.
However, he is open to supporting other candidates if they emerge through a legitimate process.
“The real coalition we need is in the ballot box. The real coalition is of votes at the ballot box. You protect them all the way to declaration,” Baba-Ahmed asserted.
He rejected the idea that a formal alliance is the sole path to defeating a ruling party.
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