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The National Chairman of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, has claimed that the late President Muhammadu Buhari feared that a Bola Tinubu presidency could spell trouble for Nigeria and resisted pressure to support his emergence as successor in 2023.
Baba-Ahmed made the allegation at a summit organised by the Northern Elders Forum (NEF), where he linked Buhari’s alleged reservations to what he described as the disastrous performance of the Tinubu administration.
With Nigerians grappling with rising living costs, economic hardship and widespread dissatisfaction, the PRP chairman argued that the country should have taken Tinubu’s presidential ambition more seriously before the 2023 election.
He cited Tinubu’s declaration of “Emilokan” — a Yoruba expression meaning “it is my turn” — as an early warning sign that Nigerians failed to interrogate.
“Nigerians ought to have known there was something wrong the day Tinubu said ‘It’s my turn’. Maybe we missed it,” he said.
“We have a presidency of a country of 250 million people. My turn? To do what? To become president.”
Baba-Ahmed said the presidency should be about service to the people, not the fulfilment of an individual’s ambition, arguing that the consequences of the country’s political choices had become increasingly evident under Tinubu.
“Even Buhari saw Tinubu as bad news for this country. In fairness to him, he is not around him. Buhari resisted some people who insisted it had to be Tinubu,” he said.
The PRP chairman did not identify those who allegedly pressured Buhari or provide further details of the former president’s reported opposition to Tinubu’s emergence.
Tinubu, who won the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential ticket and succeeded Buhari on May 29, 2023, introduced sweeping economic reforms, including petrol subsidy removal and changes to the foreign exchange system.
While the administration has defended the policies as necessary to stabilise the economy and improve public finances, their impact on living costs has drawn sustained criticism from opposition figures and Nigerians struggling with the cost of food, transportation and other essentials.
Baba-Ahmed accused Tinubu of taking the country to an alarming low, insisting that Nigerians should not be expected to endure another four years of what he described as abuse, neglect and plunder.
“Now we are being depressed for having a president for three and a half years. He has dragged the country as low as it is possible to go. And it has to stop him. We cannot go below, beyond where we are,” he said.
He added: “Every index of failure shows in this administration.”
The opposition party chairman expressed confidence that Nigerians would survive the current difficulties but warned against allowing Tinubu to secure another term at the expense of the country’s welfare.
“We will survive the four years of abuse, neglect, and plunder that Tinubu has caused because Nigeria has to survive for our children and their children,” he said.
“We will not allow a president to fulfil an ambition that one individual alone can wreck his country, just to prove that he has the power and the money to do so.”
Baba-Ahmed also criticised Tinubu’s re-election drive, questioning why the president had not personally made a stronger case to Nigerians for another four years in office.
He accused Northern governors of failing to adequately communicate the depth of economic hardship and public dissatisfaction in their states to the president, warning that the disconnect could have political consequences for the ruling party.
On the 2027 election, Baba-Ahmed said opposition parties were working to build a coalition capable of unseating Tinubu by setting aside their differences and pooling their political resources.
“What we have seen is an incredible willingness for politicians to come together and say, let’s put aside some of our differences and see if we can actually create a momentum strong enough to remove this Tinubu,” he said.
He urged Nigerians opposed to Tinubu’s return to support whoever emerges as the coalition’s presidential candidate.
“There will be a candidate that will be produced by this coalition. Vote for whoever he is,” he said.
Baba-Ahmed also called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to ensure that the 2027 election reflects the will of the electorate, saying the credibility of the process would be critical to Nigeria’s political future.
“If it does, and it must, because the consequences are almost clear, Tinubu is done,” he said.
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