A former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal has declared that the 2023 candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Mr Peter Obi won the presidential election and not President Bola Tinubu.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Lawal, a leader of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), however said things have changed since the last polls and he cannot say if Obi could repeat the same feat in 2027.
“Peter Obi won that election; that was according to the true results. We had the data. We had politicians on the field. We had agents on the field. We collected our data. We know our results. We know the result of our campaigns on the field. We can see clearly the point at which they were altered.
“They say a day in politics is long. Things have changed and the parameters that were used to evaluate our candidate in 2023. It’s going to be different from this one. Things have moved on. So, we’ll see when we get there.”
Speaking on which region and candidate should produce the president in 2027, Lawal said, “Power should go to the person that will give every Nigerian a sense of belonging, a sense of justice,” adding that northern elite will vote for a candidate that has its interest at mind, preferably from the ADC.
Lawal expressed optimism that the opposition coalition ADC would win the 2027 general election on the account of the hardship caused by policies of the present administration.
He also said: “I looked at the fact that solution to the problems can only be possible if you have the instruments of power and coercion.”
“If you don’t control the military, there’s no way you can force them into doing the right thing with the insurgency and the bandits, whatever name we like to call them. So it is important that we get the instruments of power, as northerners, in the hands of somebody who understands the issues facing us and who will face it headlong and bring the solution to an end. That is my position.”
He disclosed that a group has been constituted and started meeting with like minds. “We called it the Nigerian People’s Consultative Political Forum (North) in which almost every significant northern politician that is not in government attends our meetings. The idea is we get together to bring unity to this north.
“So we agreed that we must vote en bloc. If we don’t vote en bloc, we won’t be able to achieve our goal. That’s our understanding of the way to go. Now, whoever it is that will eventually emerge, we will only support somebody that understands the problems facing the north and will present them to him.”
Speaking on the circumstances which led to his removal in office, the former APC chieftain said; “Everybody knew I was too close to the President (Late Muhammadu Buhari). People felt that they must get at that relationship; they must destroy that relationship.”
On his strained relationship with President Tinubu, Lawal said, “The problem with Bola Tinubu is that he thinks I’m the one that offended him; I did not offend him, he offended me and he is full of himself.”
The former SGF also admitted that he was not electable, “Nobody will vote for me because my wife will not vote for me,” said while stressing that “I’m not electable. I think, in the Nigerian political scene, and I’ve never offered myself for election.”
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