Nigeria’s former vice-presidential candidate, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, has stated that Peter Obi, a former Governor of Anambra State in southeastern Nigeria and a prominent opposition figure, would be welcomed back into the Labour Party if he does not secure the presidential ticket of the African Democratic Congress ahead of the 2027 general election.
Baba-Ahmed, who served as the vice-presidential candidate of the Labour Party during Nigeria’s 2023 presidential election, made this known during an interview aired on Friday, January 9, 2026, on Channels Television, a major privately owned broadcast media organization based in Lagos, Nigeria.
According to Baba-Ahmed, returning to the Labour Party would be a more consistent political path for Obi, considering their joint political journey during the 2023 election cycle, rather than pursuing what he described as an alternative political agenda.
“I also said if Peter Obi does not get the ticket there in ADC, he is more than welcome back to the Labour Party.
“I will stand there, and nobody will do anything bad to Peter Obi. It is better for him to come back than for him to do another type of agenda,” Baba-Ahmed said.
Okay News reports that Baba-Ahmed’s comments came shortly after Peter Obi formally aligned with a newly formed opposition coalition anchored on the African Democratic Congress, a registered Nigerian political party seeking to position itself as a third-force alternative ahead of the next presidential election.
The development has generated political discussions across Nigeria, particularly among supporters of the Labour Party, a political platform that gained significant national prominence during the 2023 elections following Obi’s candidacy.
Baba-Ahmed also addressed speculations suggesting that he had declared an intention to contest Nigeria’s presidency in 2027. He firmly dismissed the reports, describing them as inaccurate and misleading.
“I never declared to contest the presidency even though there could be a possibility of that happening. I certainly did not declare for the presidency. I simply reiterated my membership of the Labour Party.
“That is all, and in the submissions I made, I clearly stated that one will have to wait for the Independent National Electoral Commission timetable and for the party to make the call for people to indicate their interest,” he explained.
Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission is the constitutionally mandated body responsible for organizing and supervising elections in Africa’s most populous country.
Baba-Ahmed further criticized what he described as excessive sensationalism on social media platforms, accusing online commentators of spreading narratives that mislead emotionally driven audiences and distort factual political discussions.
