Baba-Ahmed Defends Move Against NDC, Says Jonathan Ineligible for 2027

Baba-Ahmed Defends Move Against NDC, Says Jonathan Ineligible for 2027

A former political adviser and opposition figure, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, has defended his decision to challenge the registration of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC), insisting that his opposition to the party has nothing to do with personal disagreements with prominent politicians such as Peter Obi or Rabiu Kwankwaso.

Speaking amid growing controversy over his planned court action against the party, Baba-Ahmed said the issue was rooted in constitutional principle and the need to protect democratic legitimacy in Nigeria.

According to him, the NDC registration failed to comply with mandatory requirements laid down by the Independent National Electoral Commission for the registration of political parties.

“This is entirely about constitutional principle. I have no personal quarrel with Peter Obi or Rabiu Kwankwaso,” he said.

He alleged that the party neither submitted a formal application nor paid the mandatory administrative fee required for registration, adding that it did not participate in INEC’s official registration process.

Baba-Ahmed claimed the party secured recognition through what he described as “judicial manipulation” and accused INEC of surrendering its regulatory authority by refusing to challenge the court judgment that ordered the party’s registration.

He explained that political associations seeking registration are required to complete INEC’s Form EC15A online after paying a mandatory N2 million administrative fee to obtain access to the commission’s registration portal.

According to him, applicants are expected to upload party constitutions, manifestoes, executive members’ details, affidavits and other documents for verification before approval can be granted.

“But in the case of the NDC, it did not pay the N2 million mandatory administrative fee, it did not collect the access code, therefore it did not fill the Form EC15A and it did not upload anything at all as required by law,” he alleged.

Baba-Ahmed said he had obtained Certified True Copies of the court processes and judgment relating to the NDC registration controversy and claimed none of the fundamental registration documents were presented before the court.

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He argued that allowing such a process to stand would undermine the integrity of Nigeria’s democratic system.

The former adviser also dismissed claims that his position was motivated by bitterness over the refusal of INEC to register his own political platform, ADA.

He maintained that ADA complied with all constitutional and regulatory requirements while the NDC allegedly bypassed the established process.

On the 2027 presidential election, Baba-Ahmed said former President Goodluck Jonathan was constitutionally barred from contesting again.

He cited a Supreme Court judgment and a constitutional amendment signed into law by former President Muhammadu Buhari, which he said limits a vice president who completes the tenure of a deceased or removed president to only one additional elected term.

“A person who was sworn in as president to complete the term for which another person was elected as president shall not be elected to that office for more than a single term,” he quoted from the Constitution.

According to him, Jonathan had already exhausted the constitutional limit after succeeding late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and subsequently winning the 2011 presidential election.

Baba-Ahmed also criticised INEC for what he called regulatory failure, accusing the commission of publishing names of NDC officials on its website without adequate legal basis.

He said the commission should immediately appeal the judgment that led to the party’s recognition and enforce its regulations without bias.

On zoning and power rotation, Baba-Ahmed said competence and constitutional integrity should matter more than regional considerations.

He stated that Nigerians should focus on whether candidates emerge through legitimate democratic processes rather than whether they come from the North or South.

“I will support whoever demonstrates radical integrity,” he said while refusing to endorse either President Bola Tinubu or any opposition candidate ahead of the next general election.

He warned Nigerians against blindly supporting politicians based on reputation alone, accusing some opposition figures of lending credibility to what he described as an illegitimate political structure.

Describing the NDC as “constitutionally inaccurate,” Baba-Ahmed argued that the party lacked what political philosopher Hannah Arendt called “public natality” — the legitimate democratic birth of a political institution through due process.

Despite his concerns about the state of the opposition and democratic institutions, Baba-Ahmed said he still believed in democracy but warned that Nigerians must remain vigilant in defending constitutional order.

He urged citizens to critically examine how political parties and candidates emerge, insisting that democratic legitimacy in Nigeria must never be sacrificed for political convenience.

Baba-Ahmed Defends Move Against NDC, Says Jonathan Ineligible for 2027