The national chairman of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, has claimed that the party rejected demands by Peter Obi and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso for an automatic joint presidential ticket.
Baba-Ahmed spoke during an interview on a Hausa political programme on DITV Kaduna.
He said initial discussions on a possible alliance advanced to the point of setting up a joint committee before collapsing over disagreements on entry terms.
According to Baba-Ahmed, Obi, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), and Kwankwaso, former governor of Kano, expressed desires to join the PRP on the condition that they would automatically receive the party’s presidential ticket.
“We told them no, this is PRP; we do not practise that kind of politics,” the PRP chairman said.
He insisted that both politicians must first formally join the party and subject themselves to its internal democratic processes like any other aspirant.
“I told them: first come into the party. After joining, you can then tell me, I am Obi and I want to run for president,’ and ‘I am Kwankwaso and I want to be his running mate,” Baba-Ahmed said.
“But for you to come even before a decision is made and ask us to guarantee you the ticket without opposition… why fear competition?”
He said the party’s leadership acknowledged the stature and followership of both men, saying, “if anyone entered a room and saw Obi and Kwankwaso, they would think strong contenders had arrived.”
However, he said the party refused to bend its constitution or democratic norms to accommodate them.
Baba-Ahmed said the two politicians’ camps also demanded a significant share of party positions in exchange for the supporters they would bring in, a request, he noted, could be discussed only after they formally joined the party.
