The spokesperson of the Atiku Abubakar Presidential Campaign, Kenneth Okonkwo, has rejected Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed’s assessment of Atiku Abubakar’s capacity to improve Nigeria, pointing to the former vice president’s record in office between 1999 and 2007.
Recall that Datti Baba-Ahmed, the Labour Party’s 2023 vice-presidential candidate, made the remarks on the MicOn Podcast on September 5, arguing that none of President Bola Tinubu’s major opponents, including Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, has the capacity to improve Nigeria.
Reacting to the remarks, Okonkwo said Baba-Ahmed’s assertions were smart but that he ultimately reached a wrong and confusing conclusion, before challenging his assessment of Atiku’s capacity.
“I saw some very smart assertions. But unfortunately, he reached a conclusion that probably confused himself and confused me along the line.
“I simply say that his conclusions were wrong.”
Recalling his work with Datti in the Labour Party during the 2023 election, Okonkwo said he understood why his former colleague was critical of Peter Obi, attributing the position to the political trauma that followed the party’s collapse and what he described as Obi’s failure to provide the leadership needed to manage the party’s affairs.
“We were in the same trenches in 2023. I understand why he made his comment about Peter Obi, because we were in the same trenches together. I can tell you that he may be suffering from what I call post-political identity crisis. After working with Peter Obi, you run the risk of suffering that, because we all came in in 2023 with high hopes. We thought that a new Nigeria was being birthed, because for the first time in my life, I saw people coming into an association for what they could give, and nobody was talking about what they could take or receive.
“If such an association or organization ends the way the Labour Party ended, you will see everybody coming out with political trauma. That spoke of incompetence and incapacity of the political leader then—Peter Obi—to manage their affairs.”
Questioning Baba-Ahmed’s position, Okonkwo challenged his failure to endorse his own preferred candidate after ruling out the leading opposition figures, particularly Atiku and Obi, as capable of improving Nigeria.
“With respect, why didn’t he mention his own candidate and endorse him in the interview? Yes, he did not, and he could have as well gone forward to endorse his own candidate. Why did he keep quiet on that?”
Asserting that in the coming elections, Atiku would score higher than the other presidential candidates, Okonkwo highlighted Atiku’s record of governance, noting his role in managing the economy, ensuring security and attracting capable technocrats to government between 1999 and 2007.
“Let’s say that there are three major contenders now for the 2027 election: Tinubu, Atiku, and Obi. Among these three, from 1999, assuming that you gave them or they were given an opportunity for each one to vote for the other two and not vote for themselves, Atiku would have scored 2-0, Tinubu 0, and Peter Obi 0.
“In 2007, Atiku had concluded his tenure as Vice President. Tinubu endorsed him to be the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. In 2019, Atiku Abubakar was endorsed by Peter Obi to be the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Tinubu has never endorsed Obi to be president; Atiku has never endorsed Obi to be president; Atiku has never endorsed Tinubu to be president; Obi has never endorsed Atiku to be president. This is 2-0.
“Moving into 2027, because he said none has the capacity, you judge a man from his antecedent. Between 1999 and 2007, that was the only time you can judge Atiku Abubakar. That was when he performed in the public space. We had the cheapest of everything; we had security; Atiku was the head of the economic team. He co-opted the best in the whole world—that was when Okonjo-Iweala came on board. That was when El-Rufai was brought in to sanitize the FCT.”
He insisted that the ADC presidential candidate has not lost his political relevance, arguing that Atiku is now more relevant than ever based on his record in office and experience in managing Nigeria’s economy and security.
“It is now that he is most relevant. I am telling you that a man who ensured security and the economy for the nation when we needed it most, and paid off all the foreign debt of Nigeria while paying subsidies—Nigerians have never had it as good as they had from 1999 to 2007. Nigeria was a pariah state in 1999; no country wanted us to visit them, including the UK and US. By 2007, we were the darling of the whole world.”
Reacting to Obi’s appearance at Seyi Makinde’s campaign office opening, Okonkwo dismissed the event as insufficient evidence of a meaningful opposition alliance, citing Obi’s previous decision to leave the ADC and pursue a separate presidential bid.
“I wish I could help you to say it could be that it is offering an alliance. But unfortunately, being very honest, I can’t say it. Because Peter Obi was in ADC and offered to be in an alliance with ADC, and he ran away—almost like 153 primaries. Even if you invite him for a naming ceremony or a wedding ceremony, he will still be there waving at the crowd, even if there is no crowd, he will wave at trees. So I cannot say a particular photo op that he has been in is any meaningful alliance.”
Speaking on Atiku’s fuel subsidy plans, Okonkwo said the former vice president would cap subsidy spending and shift the focus from subsidising consumption to subsidising domestic production.
He argued that with Nigeria now producing much of its fuel locally, supporting production would help lower costs for consumers while creating jobs and increasing the value of petroleum derivatives.
“When Tinubu came in, we were importing all our fuel. Today, we are producing almost all our fuel. So what is wrong in subsidizing production rather than consumption? What Atiku is simply saying is, ‘Tinubu, you have failed when we were importing our fuel; you have failed even when we are producing all our fuel. Now that it is our product, why don’t we subsidize the production? We will increase employment, and we will increase the derivatives that are coming out.'”
On how Atiku would fund the subsidy, Okonkwo said the government could reduce production costs by tackling inefficiency, corruption, insecurity and inadequate power supply in the oil sector. He also proposed recovering funds from what he described as import waivers and unaccountable agencies and redirecting the resources to support domestic oil production.
“He does not even need to bring money physically to invest. Oil is our product. We are producing this oil at the average cost of $30 per barrel. The world average of cost of producing crude is $12 per barrel. What is causing the $30 per barrel? Inefficiency and corruption in the system, and lack of public infrastructure.
“The oil companies produce their own security to guard their staff from being kidnapped and guard their equipment. Provide security for them, and you will have made the production of crude oil cheaper.
“Give power to these oil companies, and you will see their cost of producing it become very, very cheap, because all the subsidies have been removed.”
Continuing, Okonkwo said Atiku would make crude oil available to Dangote and other local refineries, provide the public infrastructure needed to lower production costs and offer crude at discounted rates where necessary.
He argued that the approach would make refined products cheaper, stimulate production and enable Nigeria to earn more from multiple petroleum products.
“On fuel subsidy, Atiku Abubakar is going to supply all the crude that Dangote and the local refineries need. That’s what he said. Atiku is going to provide the public infrastructure that the oil companies need, and if that is done, the production cost of crude will come down to $12. So if you remove $20, which is the average cost of our production, you know what it means. And this is not pumping in any money; this is simply efficiency and removing corruption.
“Then you can imagine if he discounts the price, since it is our product, and there is nothing like international safeguard against it. When you do that, you will stimulate production, and we will now be selling the refined crude and making money from seven different products instead of one. You can imagine that we will now make as much money as we want.
“So that’s what Atiku is saying: ‘I will supply crude oil, I would provide the public infrastructure that the oil companies need, and I will give them at a discounted rate, crude oil if need be, and that will make our fuel—the refined product—very cheap, and make the whole world buy our refined fuel.’
“That’s about fuel subsidy. And that is why Atiku is the person that is most qualified to take over from Tinubu.”
Responding to concerns over Atiku’s commitment to zoning, Okonkwo rejected the claim that the ADC presidential candidate is opposed to the principle, arguing that Atiku was instrumental in its adoption and had supported power shifting to the South in 1999.
“Atiku, not only does he believe in zoning, he was part of the authors of zoning. You forgot that Atiku had won to become a governor in Adamawa State in 1999, but he went to alter it to help bring Obasanjo, a Southerner, to come and become president. And he insisted power must shift to the South.”
He further argued that Atiku should be seen as a victim rather than a beneficiary of the breakdown of the zoning arrangement, citing the events surrounding the 2007 and 2011 elections as evidence.
“I will tell you that Atiku is a victim of the desecration of zoning. In 2007, what happened? They returned power to the North. Yar’Adua died two years and a half in office. In 2011, it was supposed to be the turn of the North to complete their eight years, because we are talking about eight years, not rotation per term. Atiku was to be the beneficiary of it, and the Southerners with the power of incumbency refused. That was when we started having problems with the zoning system. So Atiku is a victim; he is not the villain.”
Favour Odima
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