Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, leader of the Kwankwasiyya Movement, has firmly denied allegations that he and former Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi demanded a “free ticket” from the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The denial follows claims by PRP National Chairman, Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, who alleged that both politicians approached the party seeking its presidential ticket without undergoing any internal democratic process.
Speaking during an interview with DITV Kaduna, Baba-Ahmed stated that the PRP rejected the overtures because the party does not “practice that kind of politics.”
“Before they joined, they told us they were presidential candidates, meaning they should be given the ticket. We told them no, this is PRP; we do not practice that kind of politics,” Baba-Ahmed said.
But in a swift rebuttal, the Kwankwasiyya Movement dismissed the claims as baseless and a tactic to garner attention.
“We never begged”
Habeeb Saleh Mohammed, spokesperson for the Kwankwasiyya Movement, made it clear that there was no official meeting where Kwankwaso or Peter Obi directly requested any ticket.
“There was no official sitting where my principal or Peter Obi directly requested a ticket,” Mohammed clarified.
He went further to question Baba-Ahmed’s motives, suggesting that the PRP chairman’s statements were designed to generate attention amid the rising political profiles of Kwankwaso and Obi.
“The claim that we approached them for a ticket is baseless and should not have even warranted a response,” Mohammed added.
Background to the dispute
The disagreement comes after both Kwankwaso and Obi joined the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) to pursue their presidential aspirations — a move that marks a significant step in their 2027 political journey.
Despite the back-and-forth, the PRP has maintained its stance that no candidate will be offered the presidential ticket without first following the party’s internal democratic processes.
For now, Kwankwaso’s camp insists that the allegations of “ticket begging” are nothing more than an attention-seeking strategy, and that the former Kano State governor remains focused on his political objectives with the NDC.
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