Obi Preferred Yesufu for House of Reps Seat, Not Senate — NDC Secretary

The National Secretary of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Ikenna Enekweizu, has revealed that the party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, initially supported activist Aisha Yesufu’s bid for the AMAC/Gwari Federal House of Representatives seat rather than the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Senate seat.

Enekweizu made the disclosure during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday, where he addressed issues surrounding Yesufu’s participation in the party’s primary elections and subsequent grievances.

According to him, discussions between the party leadership and Obi focused on building consensus around a candidate for the AMAC/Gwari House of Representatives constituency following Obi’s decision to join the NDC.

“When Peter Obi joined the party, part of what we wanted to do with him was to help us build consensus on who would emerge as the party’s candidate for the AMAC/Gwari seat,” Enekweizu said.

He explained that Obi personally expressed a desire for Yesufu to contest the House of Representatives position, describing it as the office he believed would be most suitable for her political aspirations at the time.

“He told me personally that he wanted Aisha Yesufu to run for the House of Representatives seat representing AMAC/Gwari,” Enekweizu stated.

However, the party official said he was surprised when reports later emerged indicating that Yesufu intended to contest for the FCT Senate seat instead.

“Just two or three days after our discussion, I saw on social media that Aisha was running for the Senate. That was not part of our discussions,” he added.

Enekweizu disclosed that efforts were subsequently made by the party leadership to persuade Yesufu to reconsider her decision and contest the House of Representatives seat.

According to him, the party’s national leader met with Yesufu on two separate occasions and appealed to her to accept the House of Representatives ticket.

“The national leader of the party invited Aisha Yesufu and met with her twice, urging her to run for the House of Representatives,” he said.

Despite the appeals, Enekweizu said Yesufu remained firm in her decision to seek a seat in the Senate.

“Aisha said she was bigger than the House of Representatives office. She insisted that she wanted to be a senator and that nothing would stop her from going to the Senate. At that point, we allowed her to pursue her ambition,” he stated.

Commenting on the outcome of the primary election, Enekweizu noted that Yesufu was unsuccessful in her bid to secure the party’s Senate ticket.

He maintained that the party had treated all aspirants fairly and that several other candidates who lost their primaries had also expressed dissatisfaction with the outcomes.

“Aisha Yesufu lost the primary election. If she feels aggrieved, she is not alone. Many people who lost primaries in different constituencies have also reached out to us,” he said.

The NDC secretary also rejected claims that Yesufu had been sidelined because of her association with Obi, insisting that the primary process was open and competitive.

He pointed out that numerous supporters of Obi participated in the contest, stressing that no aspirant received preferential treatment.

“She is not the only supporter of Peter Obi who sought the AMAC/Gwari ticket. A total of 23 aspirants purchased the expression of interest and nomination forms. The party had to manage all of them fairly,” Enekweizu said.

The remarks come amid ongoing debates within the NDC over the conduct of its primaries and the selection of candidates ahead of upcoming elections.