2027: Obi supporters won’t trust INEC with votes —  Aisha Yesufu

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By Sekinat Osundiji

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Political activist and Nigeria Democratic Congress member, Aisha Yesufu, has said supporters of the party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, will not rely solely on electoral institutions to protect their votes in the 2027 presidential election.

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Yesufu said Obi’s supporters would deploy representatives to polling units and monitor the movement of election materials and results from polling units through the various collation centres to Abuja.

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She stated this during an interview on Arise News, where she discussed Obi’s chances in the 2027 presidential election and lessons from the 2023 election.

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According to her, the experience of the 2023 election had made it necessary for voters and political groups to take a more active role in protecting their votes.

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“Yes, we are going to have people at every polling unit to protect the votes,” Yesufu said.

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She said the plan was to monitor the results at every stage of the collation process, from the polling unit to the ward, local government and state levels, until the final declaration in Abuja.

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“No result sheet will leave our sight. We will follow the results from the polling units all the way to Abuja,” she said.

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Yesufu said the strategy was aimed at ensuring that the results eventually declared reflected the votes cast by Nigerians.

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She further stated that she had “zero trust” in INEC, security agencies and the judiciary, insisting that citizens could not afford to leave the protection of their votes entirely to institutions.

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According to her, the 2027 election would therefore require greater grassroots mobilisation, with supporters concentrating on polling units rather than relying only on political rallies and campaigns.

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Speaking on the recent incident in Benue State, where Obi’s movement was reportedly obstructed, Yesufu defended the former Anambra State governor’s decision not to engage those who blocked his convoy.

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She argued that Obi had other engagements to attend that day and should not allow what she described as “miscreants” to dictate his movements.

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Yesufu also expressed confidence that Obi could win the 2027 election, saying Nigerians were now more concerned about the impact of economic hardship and insecurity on their daily lives.

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She criticised the administration of President Bola Tinubu, describing it as a “colossal failure” and arguing that the government’s claims about improved macroeconomic indicators had not translated into better living conditions for ordinary Nigerians.

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According to her, Nigerians were dealing with rising costs, insecurity and declining purchasing power, adding that economic policies should ultimately be measured by their impact on citizens.

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Yesufu said she believed Obi had an advantage because, in her view, voters were increasingly focused on competence, character and capacity rather than religious considerations.

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She also expressed confidence that Obi would win Lagos again in 2027 and make significant gains across other parts of the country.

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Yesufu, who said she was not seeking an elective position, stated that her focus was on mobilising supporters for the 2027 presidential election and ensuring that votes were protected.

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She said the experience of 2023 had shown that supporters needed to be more organised at the grassroots if they wanted the votes of Nigerians to determine the final outcome of the election.

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