7 days to the 2023 presidential election, the spokesperson for the Northern Elders Forum (NEF), Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, on Saturday said that the group will not be pressured to endorse the candidacy of Peter Obi-Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed.
POLITICS NIGERIA reports that Obi, a former governor of Anambra State, is the presidential flag-bearer of the Labour Party. Datti Baba-Ahmed, a former Senator, is the younger brother of the NEF spokesman.
While many Nigerian commenters have expressed their disappointment with the two main political parties who have governed the nation for a combined 24 years, the Labour Party candidates are seen as leaders that can perform better than the two main political parties: the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Groups such as the Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum (SMBLF) and Afenifere have endorsed Obi as their preferred candidate for the February 25 presidential election but NEF has chosen to sit on the fence. Baba-Ahmed defended their decision.
I tolerate demands that NEF or I should endorse Obi-Datti or declare our stand now.I understand that people think we have some influence.But we do not owe anyone our loyalty on demand,nor shall we choose what others insist we do.If exercising choices offends some people, too bad
— Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed. (@baba_hakeem) February 18, 2023
“I tolerate demands that NEF or I should endorse Obi-Datti or declare our stand now. I understand that people think we have some influence. But we do not owe anyone our loyalty on demand, nor shall we choose what others insist we do. If exercising choices offends some people, too bad,” the elder statesman wrote on his known Twitter handle.
