The 2023 Vice Presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Senator Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed has formally declared his presidential bid ahead of the 2027 general election.
Datti declared his 2027 presidential bid just days after his former running mate, the 2023 Presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, defected to the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Speaking at a rally held at the Labour Party’s national secretariat in Abuja on Wednesday, Datti emphasized that his ambition to become Nigeria’s president is longstanding and not a reaction to recent political shifts, stating it predates his 2023 partnership with Obi.
He said: “I have made myself to contest for the office in 2027. I’m not following anybody’s trajectory or stepping into anybody’s shoes.
“Can I please remind you that before His Excellency Governor Peter Obi filed for the presidency, I aspired for the presidency before him? The records are there for you to see.
“In October 2018, I participated in the primaries of the then PDP in Port Harcourt and walked to Obi for his vote, and he smiled at me. What a gentleman he was.
“If you heard me well in what I just submitted, I saw a rare opportunity for national unity to have elected Peter Obi in 2023. And that is why I decided to flow with it,” he said.
Addressing concerns about religion and ethnicity, Datti said he declared his presidential bid in line with the Constitution.
He added that Nigeria’s constitution guarantees every qualified citizen the right to seek elective office.
According to him, the clamour that the presidency should remain in the south is just a gentleman’s agreement and not enshrined in the Constitution.
“Yes, I am a practising Muslim. But I’m a Nigerian, and the constitution allows me to contest. You asked about my ethnicity. Yes, I am a Hausa man, and the Nigerian constitution also allows me to contest. I’m doing this because Nigeria needs help,” he said.
However, Datti noted that while he had made his intention known, he would adhere strictly to party and electoral guidelines.
“However, as a law-abiding citizen and a loyal party member, until the timetable is released by INEC and the leadership of the Labour Party calls for interested aspirants, I will not say anything about it. But remember I told you that Nigerians know the truth,” he stated.
The declaration comes barely a week after Obi, the 2023 LP presidential candidate who garnered over 6 million votes, announced his departure from the party to join the ADC.
Many political observers had anticipated that Obi, still a dominant figure in Nigeria’s opposition space, might seek the presidency again in 2027—potentially on a new platform or through mergers.
Datt’s decision to stay loyal to the Labour Party and stake his claim early could disrupt those plans.
By positioning himself as the frontrunner within the Labour Party, the platform that propelled the Obi-Datti ticket to third place in 2023, Datti has effectively thrown a spanner in the works for any potential Obi return should in case he fail to get the ADC’s presidential ticket, or broader opposition unity efforts involving the Labour Party structure.
Analysts also suggested that Datti’s candidacy could split the northern and youth votes that were crucial to the Obidient movement in 2023, potentially weakening any unified challenge against the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
However, speaking after Datti declared his presidential bid, the National Chairman of the Labour Party, Julius Abure, commended him for remaining in the party despite speculations that he might defect following Obi’s exit.
Abure said the development demonstrated that the Labour Party remained intact, adding that several key figures, including the Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, had also chosen to stay back.
He said: “Only recently, the Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, told the world that he joined the party before Peter Obi did – this is true. Otti also said he was not going to defect to Peter Obi.
“On the night Peter Obi defected, I received a telephone call from our Vice-Presidential candidate in the 2023 elections, Dr Datti Baba-Ahmed. He said he is not leaving the party because it was the platform upon which he, along with the former candidate, received 10 million votes from Nigerians, which was reduced to 6 million votes. We all know what happened.”
Abure further disclosed that Baba-Ahmed personally suggested a meeting of party leaders and members to reaffirm unity within the party.
“In fact, he asked me to organise an event where members can come together. He first suggested that we meet at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel with a few senior members that he would foot the bill.
“But I suggested that we hold the event here at the party Secretariat and invite our members, artisans, and ordinary people who truly own the party, and he agreed. That is why we are having this gathering here today.
“The Labour Party is intact, we will not let Nigerians down. We will remain together and provide a genuine alternative for Nigerians,” he said.
