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One would expect that Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed was still resting and reflecting. He should retire soberly, learning the brutal lessons of the 2023 presidential election. There, Nigerians have overwhelmingly rejected the Labor Party’s cocktail of noise without structure, arrogance without numbers and social media buzz without electoral reality.
Instead, the former Labor Party vice-presidential candidate suddenly developed what many political observers now rightly describe as diarrhea of the mouth. He became talkative in defeat, dangerous in frustration and inconsistent in analysis. His latest outburst is not only irresponsible, it is shameful, ridiculous and absolutely absurd.
In an interview with broadcaster Seun Okinbaloye on the Mic On Podcast, Baba-Ahmed took it upon himself to tell Nigerians why Vice President Kashim Shettima does not wear what he called “the Asiwaju Tinubu cap”.
Baba-Ahmed, unable to understand the brand, loyalty and political symbolism, decided to mystify it. This is the new low our politics has brought us to. From politics to cap, from governance to marabout, from real issues to spiritual gossip.
This accusation from Baba-Ahmed is not only absurd, it is ridiculous and shameful, coming from a politician who has yet to recover from his defeat in the 2023 presidential election. Otherwise, how can one imagine that a man who wanted to become vice president would make this kind of dreamlike statement? It doesn’t make any sense.
Nigerians should check the facts carefully, as Baba-Ahmed has recently shown inconsistency and signs of political psychological distortion. Since 2023, his public statements have become increasingly erratic. After launching scathing attacks on Peter Obi, his former presidential candidate, now touted as the new flag bearer of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC), Baba-Ahmed has become one of the latest examples of oral diarrhea and personality anomalies in Nigerian politics.
He attacks the party that gave him a platform, bites the hand of the candidate next to him and lashes out at everyone but himself. Now, its latest, desperate assault targets Nigeria’s respected Vice President, Senator Shettima, a man of unassailable dignity, intellect and proven loyalty. It is no longer a matter of mere political disagreement; it is a clear sign that his political frustration has reached a fever pitch.
Baba-Ahmed is desperately lowering the level of Nigeria’s political discourse, and it must stop. Politics, in its essence, is a noble pursuit. It is a battle of superior ideas, rigorous organization and strategic vision focused entirely on public service. Reducing this vital national context to the level of marabout gossip, superstitious cap gazing and babalawo analysis does a disservice to the electorate. Nigeria deserves a debate centered on substance, not witchcraft.
In politics, precision beats passion. If you design your strategy correctly, victory in the Nigerian elections is not only possible, but inevitable. The political rise of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu offers the ultimate masterclass. Its formula has never been a mystery: it is a calculated and people-focused project. While others chased fleeting trends, President Tinubu spent three decades building bridges across Nigeria’s deepest fault lines: ethnic, religious and regional.
He has engineered a formidable political machine fueled not by a wave of angry tweets, but by generational sacrifice, strategic investments in human capital, and radical tolerance. He didn’t rely on digital outrage; it relied on structure, fierce loyalty and the economic transformation of Lagos as its undeniable proof of concept. In the arena of power, structural depth will always outlast online noise. That’s why Nigerians voted for him. That’s why he won.
The failed politician, Datti Baba-Ahmed, is attempting to divert attention from the momentum of the Tinubu/Shettima magic wand by focusing on ridiculous and trivial issues.
As the Tinubu administration is breaking a 20-year curse on the cabotage fund, as the Copyright Commission seizes $7 million worth of pirated books to protect intellectual property, as reforms take root, Baba-Ahmed wants the nation to debate whether the vice president’s cap was banned by a marabout. Of course, reasonable Nigerians should ignore politicians who never fare as well as him.
Let’s dismantle this marabout nonsense once and for all. Vice President Shettima is a proud Kanuri, a devout Muslim and a highly educated former university lecturer and banker. This is a man who served as a state commissioner, led Borno State as governor during the height of the Boko Haram insurgency and served with distinction in the Senate. He is not a light politician who is easily influenced by the shadows.
His loyalty to President Tinubu is not a performative act in front of the cameras – it is organic. It is deeply rooted in a shared ideology of progressive politics. Senator Shettima has stood by his boss through thick and thin, defending this administration both at home and on the global stage with fierce intelligence, hard data and undeniable eloquence. Reducing this sophisticated political alliance to superstitious gossip is not only inaccurate; it is completely out of touch with reality.
The vice president doesn’t need a cap to demonstrate his loyalty. Those who understand power know that loyalty is proven in the council, not in the wardrobe. To suggest that his style of dress is dictated by an Islamic marabout is not just childish; it is a deliberate attempt to instill religious suspicion in the Presidency. It is a calculated attempt to tell Tinubu’s supporters, “Look, your vice president has a spiritual agenda against you.” It’s divisive, it’s spiteful, and it needs to be called out.
What is even more offensive is that Baba-Ahmed, who claims to be educated and worldly, would publicly disrespect Islamic clerics by using the word “marabout” in such a derogatory and fetishistic manner. He is dragging respected religious leaders into his petty political gossip.
The truth is simple: Datti Baba-Ahmed still has to come to terms with the fact that the 2023 elections are over. The Labor Party lost, he lost and he is not vice president. Kashim Shettima is, and no amount of podcast interviews will change that reality.
Nigeria deserves constructive opposition. We need leaders who can keep the government on its toes with alternative figures on the removal of fuel subsidies, alternative food safety policies and concrete ideas on safety. Nigeria does not need an opposition sitting in a study making conspiracy theories about caps.
The Tinubu/Shettima ticket was a winning combination precisely because it combined experience, competence and loyalty. That combination continues to work. The administration is focused, the president trusts his vice president, and the vice president respects and honors his president. No lie, no gossip and no delusional interview can break that bond.
This inglorious vituperation demands total condemnation from every well meaning Nigerian. Baba-Ahmed must be told that enough is enough. It’s time for him to practice humility, seek help, and stop holding this country back. History will completely forget its marabout tales. Instead, it will brand him as the man who trivialized politics simply because he lost an election
…Muhammad, presidential assistant, public analyst and doctoral candidate, writes from Abuja.
