A chieftain of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Kenneth Okonkwo, says the recent criticism of Peter Obi by his former running mate, Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, may be the result of what he described as a “post-political identity crisis” arising from their experience in the 2023 presidential election.
Okonkwo stated this on Tuesday during an appearance on ARISE Television’s Daybreak programme while reacting to Datti’s recent comments about Obi.
DAILY POST reports that Datti recently declared that none of the leading contenders for the 2027 presidency, including Obi, has the capacity to transform Nigeria.
“None of the people contesting will improve Nigeria, including Peter Obi,” he had said.
Reacting, Okonkwo, who is the spokesman for the ADC presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, argued that the collapse of the political structure that powered the 2023 campaign may have left Datti disillusioned with Obi.
“I understand why he made his comment about Peter Obi, because we were in the same trenches together, and I can tell you that he may be suffering from what I call a post-political identity crisis,” Okonkwo said.
The Nollywood veteran-turned-politician recalled the optimism that surrounded the Obi-Baba-Ahmed campaign in 2023, stressing that many supporters joined the movement because they believed it could produce a fundamentally different political direction for Nigeria.
According to him, the movement was unusual because many of its supporters were motivated by what they could contribute rather than by personal political or material benefits.
Datti vs Peter Obi: Kenneth Okonkwo reveals reason behind fresh attack