“Something Happened After Labour”: Kenneth Okonkwo Explains Datti’s Attack on 2027 Candidates

Kenneth Okonkwo, spokesperson for Atiku Abubakar’s presidential campaign, has said Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed may be suffering from what he described as a “post-political identity crisis” following his experience as Peter Obi’s running mate in the 2023 presidential election.

Okonkwo attributed the eventual disillusionment among some members of the Labour Party movement to what he described as the “incompetence and incapacity” of Obi to manage the affairs of the party.

A Political Diagnosis

Kenneth Okonkwo, spokesperson for the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, has offered a psychological diagnosis for the recent comments made by Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, the former running mate of Peter Obi.

Okonkwo said Baba-Ahmed may be suffering from what he described as a “post-political identity crisis” following his experience as Obi’s running mate in the 2023 presidential election.

Okonkwo made the remarks during an interview on Arise TV’s Daybreak on Tuesday while reacting to Baba-Ahmed’s recent claim that none of the leading presidential candidates for the 2027 election, including Obi, has the capacity to improve Nigeria.

The Trauma of 2023

Okonkwo said Baba-Ahmed’s experience with Obi and the collapse of the political structure they ran on in 2023 may have affected his perception of the former Anambra State governor.

“I understand why he made his comment about Peter Obi, because we were in the same trenches together, and I can tell you that he may be suffering from what I call post-political identity crisis,” Okonkwo said.

He said those who participated in the 2023 campaign entered the political movement with high expectations that it would produce a new political direction for Nigeria.

“After working with Peter Obi, you run the risk of suffering that, because we all came in in 2023 with high hopes, and we thought that a new Nigeria is birthed,” he said.

The Failure of Leadership

Okonkwo attributed the eventual disillusionment among some members of the movement to what he described as the “incompetence and incapacity” of Obi to manage the affairs of the Labour Party.

“So, if such an association ends the way the Labour Party ended, you will see everybody coming out with political trauma, because that spoke of incompetence and incapacity of the political leader then called Peter Obi to manage the affairs,” Okonkwo said.

According to him, supporters had provided the resources needed for the political project but expected leadership in return.

“When everything is provided for you, the people are willing to do something for you. They were willing to provide resources. They were only asking for one thing, and that’s leadership. And you could not provide it,” he said.

Okonkwo further referenced Baba-Ahmed’s previous comments that he could no longer help Obi after the Labour Party experience, interpreting the statement as evidence that the former vice-presidential candidate had lost confidence in Obi.

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A Lesson for Nigeria

The diagnosis of a “post-political identity crisis” is a reminder that political movements built on personality rather than institutions are fragile.

When the leader fails to provide leadership, the followers are left disillusioned. The same politicians who build movements around themselves will never allow their own children to be left without direction.

Their families are protected.

For Nigeria, the lesson is clear: political movements must be built on institutions, not personalities.

The collapse of the Labour Party’s political structure is a cautionary tale for any political movement that places its faith in a single leader.

The same leaders who fail their followers will never allow their own children to be left behind.Build institutions, not cults of personality. Demand leadership, not charisma. And never forget that politics is about service, not self.