The Obidient Movement has insisted that Nigeria’s presidency should remain in the south in 2027, declaring that Peter Obi is best placed to complete what it describes as the region’s “remaining term.”
The position was outlined by the national coordinator of the Obidient Movement Worldwide, Yunusa Tanko, in an interview on Wednesday, as opposition politics entered a volatile new phase marked by defections, rival declarations and intensifying debate over zoning.
Tanko’s intervention came on the same day that Datti Baba-Ahmed, Obi’s running mate in the 2023 election, formally declared his intention to contest the presidency in 2027 at a rally at the Labour Party’s national secretariat in Abuja. The announcement followed Obi’s decision last week to leave the Labour Party for the African Democratic Congress (ADC), a move that has triggered uncertainty over the future of the party and the wider opposition.
Speaking after Baba-Ahmed’s declaration, Tanko said the Obidient Movement was weary of arguments urging Obi to step aside or defer his ambition. “We are democrats,” he said. “We believe it is the turn of the south and Obi will complete the remaining term of the south. That is our position.”
Baba-Ahmed, a northern Muslim, sought to downplay ethnicity and religion, insisting that Nigeria’s constitution guarantees every qualified citizen the right to seek elective office. Flanked by the embattled Labour Party national chairman, Julius Abure, he said his ambition was neither reactionary nor tied to Obi’s political choices, stressing that it predated the 2023 election.
“I am not following anybody’s trajectory or stepping into anybody’s shoes,” Baba-Ahmed told supporters. He recalled contesting party primaries as far back as 2018, when he sought the Peoples Democratic Party’s presidential ticket, and said he only accepted the vice-presidential slot in 2023 because he saw a rare opportunity for national unity behind Obi.
“Yes, I am a practising Muslim. Yes, I am Hausa,” he said. “But I am a Nigerian, and the constitution allows me to contest. I’m doing this because Nigeria needs help.”
He added that while he had made his intention known, he would abide by party and electoral rules until the Independent National Electoral Commission and party leadership released formal timetables.
The contrasting positions underline growing strains within the opposition as multiple heavyweight figures jostle for relevance ahead of 2027. On Tuesday, the former vice-president Atiku Abubakar vowed he would not withdraw from the presidential race, dismissing calls for him to step aside as dangerous to democracy. Atiku, the Peoples Democratic Party’s candidate in 2023, is now seeking the ADC ticket.
Within the Labour Party, Abure sought to project unity, praising Baba-Ahmed for remaining despite speculation that he might follow Obi out of the party. He said the decision showed the party remained intact, noting that the Abia state governor, Alex Otti, had also chosen to stay.
Abure disclosed that Baba-Ahmed had personally suggested a meeting of party leaders and members to reaffirm unity. “The Labour Party is intact,” he said. “We will remain together and provide a genuine alternative for Nigerians.”
Yet Baba-Ahmed’s declaration, alongside Obi’s defection and Tanko’s insistence on a southern presidency, has added fresh complexity to an already crowded and unsettled race, as Nigeria’s opposition begins early positioning amid shifting alliances and unresolved questions of consensus and zoning.
