2027: Former KOWA Party candidate and ex-campaigners back Tinubu

A former presidential candidate of the KOWA Party, Adesina Fagbenro-Byron, along with many former coordinators from the Obi-Datti campaign, have endorsed President Bola Tinubu for a second term. This announcement was met with disapproval from the Labour Party and the Obidient Movement.

The group, now calling themselves Batified Obidients for Tinubu-Shettima 2027, announced their shift to the All Progressives Congress after assessing their experiences during the 2023 election campaign. Among those present at the announcement was former Labour Party member Banwo Mayowa.

The Labour Party leader said they cannot confirm the membership claims of these politicians. The Obidients also questioned the roles these individuals claimed to have held during the campaign.

Fagbenro-Byron, now the National Coordinator of Batified Obidients for Tinubu-Shettima 2027, shared the group’s decision at a media briefing in Abuja. He told journalists that the new members made their choice based on what they learned from the 2023 campaign and their views on the current administration.

He stated that the declaration was not meant to reopen old political fights but to create a new path for the 2027 election. He said, “We did not come here to relive 2023. We came here to declare 2027. We did not come here to reopen old wounds but to open a new road. This is not an exercise in regret. It is a declaration of direction.

“We are former members of the 2023 Presidential Campaign Council of Peter Obi and Datti Baba-Ahmed. We gave that campaign our time, skills, and genuine belief that Nigeria could take a new direction. We saw the promise and flaws.

“We do not claim to speak for every Nigerian who once supported Mr. Obi or the Labour Party. We respect those who remain with him, and those who have gone elsewhere. But we speak for professionals who walked and worked inside that campaign, saw how it actually worked, learned lessons, and have now made a clear choice for Nigeria’s future.”

Another speaker, Fabian Chukwudoruo, who was the Head of Logistics for the Obi-Datti campaign, said they initially supported Obi as they believed he was a fresh alternative to the old political system. However, he expressed that their experiences raised concerns about the campaign’s management, diversity handling, and the use of volunteers’ skills.

He said, “In 2023, we came from diverse places and backgrounds, across the 36 states and the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria. We came together to voluntarily support Peter Obi from the South East because we believed at that time that he could represent the departure from the status quo that we sought. We gave that campaign our time, skills, and resources.

“After months of honest reflection on what we witnessed from inside the campaign, the truth became impossible to ignore. We saw real weaknesses in how talent was mismanaged, diversity mishandled, and how internal conflicts went unresolved. Competent people who offered their expertise were often left unappreciated or unrecognised.

“Those experiences raised fundamental questions about capacity. Looking back with clear eyes, we have come to see that the demands of leading a country as complex and demanding as Nigeria may have been beyond what Obi was prepared for. This is not to say he did not try, or that his intentions were not sincere.”

The defectors also acknowledged the economic hardships and security issues facing Nigerians. Chukwudoruo believed Tinubu’s reform agenda could provide a way forward. He said, “We have also watched the last three years with open minds. We saw President Bola Tinubu rightfully declared the winner of the 2023 presidential election, largely as a result of the flaws of his rivals, but also because of his own tenacity, patience, courage, and sense of organisation.

“We saw his government begin, and we saw the regime of reforms he set out to deliver. We have watched those reforms with open minds. They have been difficult. They have been painful for many households. Hunger is real. The cost of living has bitten hard. We do not dismiss these realities. We live among them.”

Chukwudoruo declared their support for Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima, stating that they had adopted the APC as their political party for the 2027 election. He said, “Today, we have made our choice. Let there be no ambiguity. We are coming together again. We are former Labour Party and Obidient supporters. We are now shifting our support to President Bola Tinubu and adopting the All Progressives Congress as our political vehicle for 2027, under the name Batified Obidients.

“We do not make this choice lightly because of our common goal: good governance and sustainable development for Nigeria. We believe that, at this moment in our national journey, President Tinubu and the APC offer the most credible direction, the most tested resolve, and the most viable platform to continue the work of rebuilding Nigeria.

“Therefore, we unequivocally endorse President Bola Tinubu for a second term. This endorsement naturally extends to Vice President Shettima, who has equally demonstrated a huge capacity for teamwork and intellect, and who has so far largely dispelled the fears that many had about a Muslim-Muslim ticket,” he stated.

In response, Labour Party’s National Publicity Secretary, Ken Asogwa, said the party does not recognize these individuals as members and questioned their decision to link their political history with the party. He said, “I am sorry to say that Labour Party does not have a record of these people. They are not our members. Anybody can cook up stories to join whatever party that comes to his mind.

“And I keep wondering why LP is the party that readily comes to their minds whenever they want to do this. If they claim to have worked for Obi-Datti Presidential Campaign Council in 2023, we all know there were people who worked for that team including the Obidient Movement.

“Even at that, the Obidients have consistently maintained that their members are not of the Labour Party. For us, these names cannot be validated. We don’t know them.”

The Obidient Movement also questioned the claims of these individuals and their supposed roles in Obi's 2023 campaign. In a phone interview with The PUNCH, the Director of Media and Communications of the movement, Onyeka Dike, said the group did not recognize these individuals and challenged them to prove their claims.

He said, “We do not even know these individuals, yet their supposed political importance is being advertised on the strength of their claimed association with Peter Obi. The real question is simple: What positions did they actually hold, who appointed them, and what evidence supports these claims?

“There is a growing perception that the quickest way to attract attention from Tinubu’s camp is to invoke Peter Obi’s name, parade imaginary political titles, announce a celebrated defection and hope to negotiate one’s way into APC patronage.

“If these individuals are truly the political heavyweights being advertised, let them demonstrate their electoral influence without borrowing Peter Obi’s identity.

“The 2027 election will not be decided by noisy defections, recycled political actors or carefully choreographed media spectacles. It will be decided by Nigerians at the ballot box. Those celebrating these defections should prepare to defend their record before the electorate,” Dike stated.