African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore has reignited political controversy surrounding former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi and his 2023 running mate, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, alleging that Datti was already aware of what he described as Obi’s political shortcomings before joining him on the presidential ticket.
Sowore made the allegation while reacting to recent comments attributed to Datti concerning Obi, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and other politicians seeking to challenge President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election.
According to Sowore, Datti’s latest assessment of Obi amounted to an admission based on his experience working closely with the former Anambra State governor.
“He knew Peter Obi, whom he deputised, was a packaged fraud. That needs no repeating; he just revealed what he knew up close,” Sowore stated.
The allegation adds another dimension to the increasingly heated political debate ahead of the 2027 general election, particularly within Nigeria’s opposition political space.
Sowore revisits 2023 encounter
Sowore also recalled an encounter with Datti during the signing of the 2023 Presidential Election Peace Accord.
He claimed that he sat beside Datti during the event and observed what he described as an unusually cordial interaction between the former Labour Party vice-presidential candidate and President Bola Tinubu.
“I sat next to Datti in 2023 at the Peace Accord signing and watched him fawning over Tinubu,” Sowore said.
He further claimed that he commented publicly about the encounter at the time, alleging that Obi and Datti were working in Tinubu’s interest.
Sowore maintained that supporters of the Labour Party ticket rejected his interpretation at the time but argued that subsequent political developments had given his earlier position greater relevance.
Datti’s criticism of Obi
The latest exchange followed comments attributed to Datti in which he questioned the ability of several politicians associated with the opposition to bring meaningful change to Nigeria.
Datti, who served as Obi’s running mate during the 2023 presidential election, reportedly included Obi among those he believed would be unable to improve the country if elected president.
He also criticised Obi’s decision to leave the Labour Party political platform and move into another political arrangement ahead of the 2027 election.
Datti said Obi had moved away from what he considered his political “comfort zone” despite his previous advice.
The comments have generated renewed debate over the relationship between the two men who jointly contested the 2023 presidential election on the Labour Party platform.
Political implications
Sowore’s response appears to be part of his broader effort to distinguish his political movement from established opposition figures ahead of 2027.
Rather than presenting the disagreement simply as a personal dispute between former political allies, Sowore used Datti’s remarks to reinforce his longstanding criticism of Nigeria’s political class.
His latest comments also seek to portray the disagreements among opposition figures as evidence of deeper political divisions that could influence the 2027 presidential contest.
The development comes at a time when several political figures and parties are positioning themselves for the next presidential election, with alliances, defections and realignments increasingly shaping the opposition landscape.
Allegation remains Sowore’s position
Sowore’s description of Obi as a “packaged fraud” is an allegation and political characterisation made by him. It should not be interpreted as an independently established fact.
Obi has remained a major political figure since the 2023 presidential election, while Datti’s latest comments have opened fresh questions about his assessment of their previous political partnership.
With the 2027 election approaching, the renewed confrontation between Sowore, Obi and Datti is likely to further intensify debate over who represents a credible alternative to the incumbent administration and whether Nigeria’s opposition can overcome its internal divisions.
For now, Sowore is using Datti’s own criticisms of Obi as a basis for arguing that the former running mate has effectively confirmed concerns he had previously raised about the Labour Party presidential ticket.