The National Secretary of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Ikenna Enekweizu, has revealed that the party’s presidential candidate for the 2027 election, Peter Obi, preferred activist Aisha Yesufu to contest for the AMAC/Gwari House of Representatives seat rather than seek election to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Senate.
Enekweizu made the disclosure during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday while responding to issues surrounding Yesufu’s participation in the party’s recent primaries.
According to him, discussions between Obi and the party leadership after the former Anambra State governor joined the NDC centred on building consensus around a suitable candidate for the AMAC/Gwari federal constituency seat.
“When Peter Obi joined the party, part of what we wanted to do with him was to allow him help us build consensus on who will be the candidate of the party for the AMAC/Gwari seat,” Enekweizu said.
He disclosed that Obi personally expressed support for Yesufu’s candidacy for the House of Representatives seat.
“He told me personally that he wanted Aisha Yesufu to run for the House of Representatives seat of AMAC/Gwari. But two or three days after he said this to me, I was surprised to read on social media that Aisha is running for Senate. We didn’t discuss that,” he stated.
The NDC secretary explained that the party leadership subsequently attempted to persuade the activist to reconsider her decision and contest for the lower legislative seat.
According to him, the party’s national leader met with Yesufu on two separate occasions in an effort to convince her to accept the House of Representatives ticket.
“The national leader of the party invited Aisha Yesufu, met with her twice, appealing to her to run for the House of Representatives,” Enekweizu said.
However, he noted that the activist remained determined to pursue a Senate seat.
“But Aisha said she was bigger than the reps office. She said she wanted to be a senator and nothing would stop her from going to the Senate. So we allowed her to run,” he added.
Enekweizu stated that Yesufu eventually contested the Senate primary but was unsuccessful.
He advised her and any other dissatisfied aspirants to take advantage of the party’s internal dispute resolution mechanisms if they had concerns about the conduct of the primaries.
“Aisha Yesufu lost the primary election. If she feels aggrieved, a lot of people who also lost the primaries in other constituencies have been reaching out to us,” he said.
The NDC official also rejected suggestions that Yesufu was singled out or unfairly treated during the process.
He pointed out that many supporters of Peter Obi participated in the primaries and that the party was obligated to provide a level playing field for all aspirants.
“She’s not the only supporter of Peter Obi that ran for AMAC/Gwari. Twenty-three aspirants bought the expression of interest and nomination form. How do we manage them all?” he asked.
The comments come amid ongoing discussions within the NDC following the conclusion of its primaries and growing public interest in the political future of Aisha Yesufu, a prominent activist and supporter of Peter Obi.
Enekweizu’s remarks also align with an earlier statement by the party’s National Leader, Seriake Dickson, who recently disclosed that the party had offered Yesufu an opportunity to contest for a House of Representatives seat, but she opted instead to seek the Senate ticket ahead of the 2027 general elections.
