Babachir Lawal, a prominent figure in the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, has openly criticized Peter Obi following his move to the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC).
During a Tuesday interview on ARISE News, Lawal labeled the former Anambra State Governor as “shifty” and expressed long-standing doubts regarding his dedication to the ADC.
Obi, the 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, exited the ADC on Sunday alongside Rabiu Kwankwaso, citing a “toxic” political atmosphere and legal conflicts within the coalition.
Lawal claimed the party had always been skeptical of Obi’s intentions. “Peter Obi joined the coalition after it had all begun for quite a long time. And let me tell you the history of it. He had always been somebody that is very shifty when it came to ADC. We never felt his heart was in it,” Lawal stated.
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He further revealed that the party had gone to great lengths to keep him, even offering him total control over a vital party role.
“And we went over backwards since we are a party that is broad-based, we want to carry everybody along to accommodate Peter Obi. I’ll tell you, at one time we just felt that he needed some encouragement to stay in the party, and we offered him to single-handedly bring the organising secretary of the party, who is at the heart of the processes of the party. We offered it to him. Bring it, whoever, whoever, whoever you want, we’ll accept him. We never extended that goodwill to any other member of the party. So you can see right from inception, we suspected that his heart was not with us,” he alleged.
When asked about the motivation behind the exit, Lawal suggested it was not based on mistrust but rather a lack of confidence. “I don’t think it is suspicion. I think it’s fear,” he said.
Addressing his previous support for Obi in 2023, Lawal clarified that it was a strategic alignment rather than personal loyalty.
“Everybody had his own route to get him there. It’s up to him. I was never a member of the Labour Party throughout the time I was supporting Peter Obi. It just so happened that at that particular time, in that election cycle, our goals, you know, merged, aligned, and we felt that we could support each other and pursue the same goal,” he explained.
He defended his shift in stance by adding, “Consistency in politics is not about the person. As life progresses, you meet better materials.”
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Lawal insisted that by leaving the party, Obi effectively ended their political relationship.
“He hasn’t even lost my support. He threw away my support because he left the platform on which we were operating. Yeah, that’s the platform, I have to operate on my own party platform. I can’t go and do anti-party because Peter Obi is tall or short or educated or what is it for? I have my own plans and processes and what I want to achieve in the party,” he added.
Regarding the impact of the Obi-Kwankwaso defection to the NDC, Lawal questioned the actual electoral strength of the move. “It looks like it’s a big thing or something. If Peter Obi leaves, and the South East decides to leave with him, they go with the House of Rep members. Well, there were quite a number of Northerners there as well. If Kwankwaso decides to leave with the 44—about 44 members of the House of Rep or whatever in Kano—some will follow him. In fact, if they are saying 17, it means that it is not much given the number of Kano State people that are in the House of Rep, South East people that are in the House of Rep. If only 17 are able to go with them, they should pray that the rest are on their side,” he remarked.
He also argued that this fragmentation might not necessarily favor the APC, suggesting, “No, it doesn’t. It doesn’t automatically guarantee. So our position is that the votes that the NDC will take majorly are going to be out of what could have naturally gone to the APC from the South.”
Lawal concluded by affirming his loyalty to the ADC, stating that the party is focused on long-term goals. “I remain in ADC along with all other people of like minds, and I think we are doing well. We joined ADC to build a party that has ideology, that has longevity, that will focus on processes and procedures rather than on a frantic urgent outcome,” he said.
He noted that the party’s stance on zoning its presidential ticket remains undecided pending internal congresses and primaries.
