The Labour Party on Friday unveiled Senator Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed as Peter Obi’s running mate for the 2023 general elections. Obi, the former governor of Anambra State is the presidential candidate of the party for the forthcoming elections.
Senator Baba-Ahmed is the owner of Baze University located in Abuja and Baba-Ahmed University, Kano. He was revealed as Peter Obi’s running mate at a ceremony held at the party’s headquarters in Abuja, yesterday. Senator Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed hails from a very famous family in Zaria, Kaduna State in northwest Nigeria.
Several people know Senator Datti as the owner of one of the most popular universities in the country, Baze University, but the Senator has been leading a very public life for at least 20 years. According to Peter Obi, one of the many reasons he chose Senator Datti was because of his young age and hence, he would have a lot to offer instead of recycling old people.
Senator Datti is in his 50s and he is one of the 33 children of his father. Every year, all 33 children congregate in Zaria to celebrate Salah with all the offspring in their family house. Senator Datti was born in the year 1969 and he attended the University of Maiduguri where he read Economics for his bachelor’s degree and master’s.
After his service year in Abeokuta, he went and started his career at the Nigeria Security Printing and Minting before leaving to join First Bank.
In 2003, he rose to fame when he contested and won the House of Reps seat in Zaria, and around that period, he completed his Ph.D. for Westminster in the United Kingdom. He left the House of Reps in 2007 and 2011, he founded Baze University.
He went on to contest for the senatorial seat in 2011 in Kaduna north and spent one year in the Senate before the election tribunal overturned his victory.
Just recently, he contested for the governorship ticket under the People’s Democratic Party in Kaduna state but lost to the eventual winner, Isah Ashiru.
