Former vice-presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, has stated that he predicted former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai’s involvement in Nigeria’s emerging political coalition two years ago.
Baba-Ahmed said he had shared this foresight with Peter Obi, the former presidential candidate of the Labour Party.
He made this known during an appearance on Arise Television’s Prime Time programme on Thursday night.
Baba-Ahmed also indicated his willingness to support any presidential candidate that emerges from the coalition, as long as the selection process is transparent and credible. He stated:
“I need to see a very clean and transparent primary is taking place, will that happen I don’t know. I’m a good team player and at the end of the day, there is only so much you humans can do.
I was the 12th aspirant in Port Harcourt and I served as Director of Research and Strategy in the PDP in 2018 and 2019, credibly I served.”
Reflecting on the 2023 general elections, he said he initially considered contesting for governorship due to his stance against a northern presidential candidacy but withdrew after assessing the nature of the primaries. He recalled:
“Because I didn’t want a presidential contest coming from the North in 2023, I thought of contesting the governorship until I saw the kind of primaries that were to be held and I pulled out, the next day Peter Obi pulled out of PDP.”
He emphasized his commitment to supporting any credible candidate from the coalition, regardless of personal affiliations:
“So if I’m in the coalition and a candidate emerges based on the kind of acceptable practices that should happen to me, I will readily work with that person and it doesn’t have to be Obi.
Peter Obi was with me in the Labour Party and we all decided to go back and contest, I’m with him by default. If he contests in coalition and wins, I will give him the support.”
Baba-Ahmed also reaffirmed the accuracy of his political projections, saying:
“I have 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.
I’m saying he would come into some form of a coalition and try to play the kind of role he is playing today.”
