Since my NYSC days, Atiku has been contesting election — Datti Baba-Ahmed

Former vice-presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Datti Baba-Ahmed, has said Nigeria must urgently open its political space to a new generation of leaders, arguing that the country cannot continue recycling the same faces if meaningful change is to be achieved.

Speaking during an interview on Channels Television, Baba-Ahmed lamented what he described as the long dominance of ageing political actors, citing former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar as an example of the persistence of old political structures.

According to him, Atiku has been contesting for Nigeria’s top job since his days as a member of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

“When I was doing my NYSC, Baba Atiku was already an aspirant. In 2018, we contested the primaries together. In 2023, we contested again, with me as a vice-presidential candidate elsewhere after his vice-president had left him. And now, for God’s sake, in 2027 again,” he said.

Baba-Ahmed stressed that Nigeria urgently needs to allow a generational shift in leadership, insisting that capable young and middle-aged Nigerians are ready to take responsibility if given the opportunity.

“There is a need for a new generation of Nigerian leaders, and they do exist. A whole new generation is waiting for a new leader to lead them to a new party,” he said.

He noted that while Nigeria is blessed with competent individuals capable of addressing the nation’s challenges, many are discouraged from participating in politics due to the nature of the system.

“There are good Nigerians capable of solving Nigeria’s problems, but they are discouraged by an expensive, difficult and treacherous system filled with godfathers and broken promises,” Baba-Ahmed added.

The former LP vice-presidential candidate further argued that many reform-minded politicians are eager to transform Nigeria’s political landscape but are constrained by structures deliberately designed to shut out fresh ideas and new entrants.

He called for reforms that would lower the cost of political participation and dismantle entrenched interests that dominate party politics, insisting that Nigeria’s future depends on embracing new leadership and ideas.