Baba-Ahmed Rejects ADC-led Opposition Coalition, Labels It Deceptive

The 2023 vice-presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Senator Datti Baba-Ahmed, has distanced himself from the coalition of opposition parties recently announced by the African Democratic Congress (ADC), describing the move as deceptive.

Baba-Ahmed, who ran alongside the Labour Party’s presidential flagbearer, Peter Obi, made the remarks during an interview on Politics Today, a Channels Television programme, on Friday.

When asked for his stance on the coalition, he dismissed it outright, saying: “They are deceiving us. I am a Labour Party man, for God’s sake. I am Peter Obi’s man. I still want Peter Obi to return to the Labour Party and contest in 2027”.

Shifting focus to the 2027 general elections, Baba-Ahmed stressed the urgent need for credibility and competence in the leadership of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). He accused the current electoral body of undermining the constitution during the 2023 presidential polls, describing electoral malpractice as the root of Nigeria’s national crises. “Not somebody who clearly read what the constitution provides 25 per cent in at least two-thirds of states of the Federation and the FCT but went ahead to breach it and put Nigeria in what it is today” he said.

According to him, electoral fraud fuels the country’s most pressing problems: “The electoral fraud is right now the single most important fact to be addressed in our life as a nation, even beyond insecurity. Insecurity is derived from electoral fraud. Corruption is aggravated by the kind of electoral fraud that we have”.

Meanwhile, the ADC has dismissed Baba-Ahmed’s comments. Its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, when contacted, said: “When he begins to make sense, we will respond”.