Fresh controversy has erupted ahead of the 2027 general elections following claims by the National Chairman of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, that former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and New Nigeria People’s Party leader, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, failed to join the PRP because they allegedly wanted guaranteed access to the party’s presidential ticket.
Baba-Ahmed made the disclosure during a Hausa political programme aired on DITV Kaduna, where he revealed details of talks said to have taken place between the PRP and the two political heavyweights before negotiations eventually collapsed.
According to him, the discussions initially started positively, with both camps reportedly showing interest in working with the PRP ahead of the next presidential election.
“They came and said they wanted to join the PRP, but when we sat down and discussed with them, there were certain demands they made,” he said.
The PRP chairman alleged that one of the major sticky points was the request that Obi and Kwankwaso should automatically secure the party’s presidential ticket without facing internal contest.
“Before they joined, they told us that they were presidential candidates, meaning they should be given the ticket. We told them no, this is PRP; we do not practice that kind of politics,’’ Baba-Ahmed stated.
He explained that the party insisted on due process and internal democracy, stressing that no aspirant could be handed a ticket without formally joining the party and participating in its procedures.
“I told them: first come into the party. After joining, you can then tell me, ‘I am Obi and I want to run for President,’ and ‘I am Kwankwaso and I want to be his running mate.’”
“But for you to come even before a decision is made and ask us to guarantee you the ticket without opposition if you are truly strong contenders, then why fear competition?” he queried.
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Baba-Ahmed said the PRP leadership recognised the political weight and popularity of both politicians but insisted the party could not compromise its constitution to accommodate personal ambitions.
“We believed that if anyone entered a room and saw Obi and Kwankwaso, they would think strong contenders had arrived. But we cannot break our party’s rules,’’ he said.
He further claimed that both camps requested substantial positions within the party structure because of the number of supporters they intended to bring along.
“They requested that many positions be given to them because they said they had many supporters. We told them this was not a problem, come into the party first, then we can sit down and discuss,” he added.
However, the Kwankwasiyya Movement swiftly rejected the allegations, describing Baba-Ahmed’s comments as an attempt to attract public attention using the names of Kwankwaso and Obi.
Reacting to the claims, the spokesperson for the movement, Habeeb Saleh Mohammed, said the PRP chairman was distorting events for political relevance.
“Well, I believe every Nigerian that is actually familiar with the situation will tell you that the PRP made an appeal on national television through its national chairman, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, asking Peter Obi and my principal, and even members of the coalition, to move into the PRP,” he said.
Mohammed stated that beyond the public appeal, he was unaware of any official negotiation where Kwankwaso or Obi demanded automatic tickets from the party leadership.
“I’m not actually aware of any official sitting among my principal, Peter Obi and the PRP as a party where my principal or Peter Obi directly requested a ticket,’’ he said.
Questioning the motive behind the allegations, the Kwankwasiyya spokesperson accused the PRP chairman of deliberately using the names of both politicians to remain politically relevant.
“I don’t know what exactly they are trying to prove. But the reality is that since my principal and Peter became the centre of attraction, I believe everybody wants to attract some sort of attention to himself by saying these things.”
“I think of late, since his younger brother joined his party, they have made it a point of talking, saying one thing or the other, either against Peter Obi or even my principal, or against the two of them,’’ he added.
Mohammed maintained that, to the best of his knowledge, there was never any occasion where both politicians approached the PRP seeking automatic presidential tickets.
“But otherwise, I don’t think there was a time, not to my knowledge, when they presented themselves to the PRP and demanded to be given the presidential ticket,’’ he said.
He also dismissed the allegation entirely, insisting it lacked substance and should not have generated public debate.
“Talking about why they did not stay with that particular party, I believe it is a baseless, unsubstantiated claim, which ought not to have gained any response from us,” he said.
Both Peter Obi and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso have since aligned with the Nigeria Democratic Congress as political consultations and coalition talks ahead of the 2027 presidential race continue to reshape Nigeria’s opposition landscape.