APC dismisses Babachir Lawal’s 2027 prediction, says ex-SGF not worth responding to

By Adebayo Obajemu

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has dismissed comments by former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, predicting that a joint presidential ticket of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) candidates, Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso, would stand a better chance of defeating President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election than if both politicians contested separately.

Lawal made the remarks during an interview with Symfoni TV while assessing the prospects of leading political figures ahead of the next general election.

Reacting to the comments on Sunday, the APC’s National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, said Lawal’s views did not deserve a response.

“He said nothing that’s worth responding to,” Morka said.

In the interview, Lawal rated the chances of potential presidential contenders, arguing that a joint Obi-Kwankwaso ticket would be a formidable force in 2027.

“Peter Obi will try to be fair to everybody. Obi will try to do that which is right.

“Peter Obi, Kwankwaso, take note, I’m pairing them. Individually will be disaster, but I’m pairing them. So I’ll give them, on my scale, close to like 70 per cent. Again, Bola, 50. Atiku, zero,” he said.

The former SGF also predicted that former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar would lose if he contested the 2027 presidential election.

“Atiku will lose. He will, and I pray he loses. I’m not the only one, and he will lose,” Lawal said.

Speaking further, Lawal credited President Tinubu with playing a pivotal role in the formation of the APC and the opposition’s victory in the 2015 presidential election.

According to him, Tinubu suspended his own presidential ambition to facilitate the merger that brought together the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and other opposition parties to challenge the then-ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Lawal recalled that former President Muhammadu Buhari asked him to facilitate discussions with Tinubu because of his close relationship with the current president.

“I was in Dubai when you called me that I should come out because we want to do a merger with the ACN. And I told you, sir, this role you want me to play, I cannot play it.

“So Buhari said, ‘You are the only one that can help us do this merger because Bola is your friend,’” Lawal recounted.

He claimed Tinubu agreed to shelve his presidential ambition in the interest of uniting the opposition.

“But, you know my ambition to be president. But the way the country is going, the primary goal is to get rid of the PDP. I will defer my ambition, put it aside until we achieve this goal,” Lawal quoted Tinubu as saying.

The former SGF also alleged that Tinubu mobilised crucial South-West support for Buhari at the APC presidential primary after reviewing delegates’ voting strength.

According to him, he persuaded Tinubu that Buhari’s traditional northern support base of about 12 million votes required only an additional three million votes from the South-West to secure victory.

“He saw the logic and persuaded them with the argument. Coming from Tinubu, of course, it carried weight. So at the last minute, around 4 a.m., they agreed that they were going to support Buhari,” Lawal said.

He further claimed that Tinubu personally financed significant aspects of the APC’s 2015 presidential campaign, including campaign activities for then vice-presidential candidate Yemi Osinbajo.

“Through him, we were able to raise sufficient funds to run the campaign. Not only that, he funded Osinbajo’s campaign, hired a chartered plane and took care of the expenses.

“Osinbajo was a pastor. His ethnic constituency and many Christians had doubts about Buhari. He operated semi-independently of the main campaign, and Tinubu funded it,” he said.

Lawal also alleged that Tinubu hired American political consultants linked to former United States President Barack Obama to strengthen the APC’s campaign strategy, claiming more than ₦2 billion was spent on the consultants.

“I don’t know their names. I just know they were Obama people, and they transformed our campaign. I knew the amount paid to them exceeded ₦2 billion, equivalent in dollars,” he said.

According to Lawal, Tinubu routinely paid for major campaign expenses from his personal resources rather than relying on the campaign’s central funds.

Despite acknowledging Tinubu’s role in building the APC and financing its 2015 campaign, Lawal said the current administration had failed to meet Nigerians’ expectations.

He accused those in government of prioritising personal interests over national development.

“The people running the government don’t seem to be people who love the country. They are people who love themselves. Everybody is bitter that life is tough.

“Suddenly, I don’t know what has happened; he has lost his soul. Having come to this government, he has lost his soul,” Lawal said.