- Atiku Would Have Been 2027 President If He Backed Obi In 2023 – Datti
- Former LP candidate praises Tinubu’s long-term political strategy.
- Baba-Ahmed doubts opposition coalition’s chances against Tinubu.
Former Labour Party (LP) vice-presidential candidate, Datti Baba-Ahmed, has said former Vice President Atiku Abubakar would have been in a stronger position to win the 2027 presidential election if he had supported Peter Obi during the 2023 election.
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EKO HOT BLOG reports that Baba-Ahmed made the assertion during an interview on Channels Television, where he reflected on the political decisions that shaped the outcome of the last presidential election and the prospects ahead of 2027.
According to him, Atiku missed an opportunity to build a stronger political future by failing to support Obi’s presidential ambition in 2023.
He argued that had Atiku stepped aside and endorsed Obi, he would have emerged as a leading contender for the presidency in 2027, adding that he personally would have supported such an arrangement.
“If in 2023 elections, he took everyone by surprise, played the kind of things Tinubu would typically do, call Peter Obi and me and say, ‘Hey, guys, you are my juniors, I’ll support you guys. No 2027 for you,’ Wallahi, I would have agreed, and I would have told Peter Obi to agree, and Atiku would have been the 2027 president of Nigeria if so had happened.
“But once they enter that trance, they tend to see themselves as President,” he said.
Baba-Ahmed praised President Bola Tinubu’s long-term political strategy, saying the President demonstrated patience by supporting other politicians before eventually pursuing his own presidential ambition.
“He (Tinubu) didn’t mind to plan for that long. When in 2007, he gave a platform to Atiku, we knew what he was doing; it was not just the time for the South-West.
“Uncle Tinubu does that a lot; he knows how to tie you with your own rope. ‘You just served eight years as Vice President. You want to come to my party? Please, take my party.’
“And he used it against him in the 2023 elections, because you tell those people that this is the man I gave a platform and he has already promised me that whenever it’s my turn, he will not challenge.”
The former lawmaker said Tinubu employed a similar approach in subsequent election cycles, including his support for the late former President Muhammadu Buhari.
“That is enough for the deciders to read the judgment that was given. Then in 2011, he gave another; then in 2015, he saw Baba Buhari, and then he calculated that since it is now North for eight years, like I said, he was patient.
“And that patience, those in this group (coalition), except Amaechi, don’t have it. Amaechi seems to have been biding his time, but the real topshot over there, if only he were able to wait, measure, play things out,” he added.
Speaking on the opposition coalition ahead of the 2027 elections, Baba-Ahmed said he had warned its members against becoming overly excited, arguing that Tinubu understands political strategy and would likely counter any moves made by the coalition.
“They didn’t have a Buhari, this coalition. And I told them if you don’t have a decent outlier, people will find it difficult to rally around him. Did they listen to me? They took offence,” he said.
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