Buhari saw Tinubu as ‘bad news’ for Nigeria, resisted push for his presidency - Hakeem Baba-Ahmed

Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, national chairman of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), says former President Muhammadu Buhari was reluctant to hand over power to President Bola Tinubu in 2023 because he considered him bad news for Nigeria.

Baba-Ahmed spoke at a summit organised by the Northern Elders Forum, in a video published on Symfoni’s YouTube channel on Saturday.

He said Nigerians should have questioned Tinubu’s presidential ambition when he declared “Emilokan” (it’s my turn) in the build-up to the 2023 elections.

“Nigerians ought to have known there was something wrong the day Tinubu said ‘It’s my turn’. Maybe we missed it,” he said.

“We have a presidency of a country of 250 million people. My turn? To do what? To become president.”

Baba-Ahmed said Buhari was reluctant to transfer power to Tinubu after realising what his presidency could mean for the country.

“Even Buhari saw Tinubu as bad news for this country. In fairness to him, he is not around him. Buhari resisted some people who insisted it had to be Tinubu,” Baba-Ahmed said.

He criticised Tinubu’s administration, saying the country had deteriorated under his leadership.

“Now we are being depressed for having a president for three and a half years. He has dragged the country as low as it is possible to go. And it has to stop him. We cannot go below, beyond where we are,” he said.

He expressed confidence in Nigerians’ ability to overcome the country’s challenges, saying it had survived crises in the past.

“We are very resilient people. We have seen crises bigger than this, and we survived it. We survived it, and we will survive this one,” he said.

“We will survive the four years of abuse, neglect, and plunder that Tinubu has caused because Nigeria has to survive for our children and their children.”

‘EVERY INDEX OF FAILURE SHOWS IN THIS ADMINISTRATION’

He accused the president of prioritising his political ambition over the country’s welfare, adding that the administration had failed across key indicators.

“We will not allow a president to fulfil an ambition that one individual alone can wreck his country, just to prove that he has the power and the money to do so,” Baba-Ahmed said.

“We are at the bottom. There is no way to go anymore. Every index of failure shows in this administration.”

He also criticised Tinubu for not personally appealing to Nigerians for another term, saying the president had instead asked his political allies to campaign on his behalf.

Baba-Ahmed said northern governors had failed to draw the president’s attention to economic hardship and public dissatisfaction in the region.

The PRP chairman said opposition parties were working towards a coalition to challenge Tinubu in 2027, adding that the alliance was serious about pooling resources and setting aside their differences.

“What we have seen is an incredible willingness for politicians to come together and say, let’s put aside some of our differences and see if we can actually create a momentum strong enough to remove this Tinubu,” he said.

Baba-Ahmed said the coalition would produce a candidate to challenge the president, urging Nigerians who oppose Tinubu’s re-election to support whoever emerges.

“There will be a candidate that will be produced by this coalition. Vote for whoever he is,” he said.

He called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to ensure that the 2027 elections reflects the will of voters.

“INEC must guarantee that the 2027 elections will reflect the will of the people,” he said.

“If it does, and it must, because the consequences are almost clear, Tinubu is done.”