ABUJA – In a move that has sent shockwaves through the nation’s political corridors, Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, the former Special Adviser on Political Matters to the President, has publicly torched his bridges with the administration, alleging that the North was “deceived” by a fraudulent Muslim-Muslim ticket.
Baba-Ahmed, who famously resigned his appointment in April 2025, broke his silence on the true reasons behind his exit. He claimed that the presidency has systematically marginalised Vice President Kashim Shettima, rendering the highest-ranking Northerner in the government “virtually redundant.”
“I left Tinubu’s government when I realized that he turned his back against Shettima and the North after deceiving them with the Muslim-Muslim ticket to get elected,” Baba-Ahmed stated in a blistering assessment of the administration’s trajectory.
The elder statesman and former spokesperson of the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) argued that the same-faith ticket, which was marketed as a bridge of religious unity, has failed to shield Northern Muslims from escalating poverty and insecurity. He described the strategy as a cold, political “deception” designed solely to capture the Northern vote.
Looking ahead to the 2027 general elections, Baba-Ahmed issued a stern warning to the President against any plan to drop Shettima from the ticket. He asserted that such a move would be interpreted as the ultimate betrayal of the region and would trigger a massive electoral backlash from Northern Muslim voters who sacrificed their religious sensitivities for the current mandate.
While the All Progressives Congress (APC) has officially dismissed rumors of a rift as “baseless speculation,” Baba-Ahmed’s comments suggest a deepening fracture within the coalition that brought the President to power. He has now called on Northern leaders to resist “divisive and deceptive politicians” as the countdown to 2027 begins.
