BREAKING: If We Had Northern Aspirants Who Won The Process, We Would Have Fielded A Northern Candidate — Ahmed
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The National Leader of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, has defended the emergence of former Cross River State governor Donald Duke as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2027 general election, insisting that the selection process was transparent and open to aspirants from every part of the country.
Speaking during a television interview with Arise News, Baba-Ahmed dismissed claims that the party deliberately zoned its presidential ticket to the South. According to him, the outcome reflected the pool of aspirants who participated in the process rather than any predetermined regional arrangement.
“If we had northern aspirants who won the process, we would have fielded a northern candidate,” Baba-Ahmed said.
He explained that all three aspirants who successfully qualified to contest the PRP presidential ticket were from southern Nigeria. The party, he noted, did not exclude northern politicians from seeking the nomination, but no northern aspirant applied for the position.
Baba-Ahmed recalled that the PRP also fielded a southern candidate in the 2023 presidential election, stressing that the party’s focus remains competence and adherence to democratic procedures rather than regional considerations.
The PRP leader argued that Nigeria’s political culture of zoning and rotational leadership has contributed to poor governance and national division. He maintained that voters should prioritise the quality, competence, and vision of candidates over their geographical origins.
Addressing concerns that the emergence of several southern opposition candidates could split votes and benefit northern contenders in the 2027 race, Baba-Ahmed rejected the assumption that Nigerians would vote solely along regional lines.
He expressed confidence that voters across the country are increasingly focused on leadership capacity and performance, adding that the PRP remains committed to presenting candidates capable of addressing Nigeria’s challenges regardless of their region, religion, or ethnic background.
