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•My grouse against state police
•Political intolerance is anarchy
Elder statesman and chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Mike Ahamba, SAN, has warned that political intolerance and violent attacks on supporters of political parties could be the harbinger of anarchy.
According to him, if any of these parties that have been attacked decide to respond, then that’s the beginning of trouble. He pointed out that while other countries are using AI to develop, some Nigerians were trying to use it to rig elections.
In an interview with VINCENT KALU, the legal luminary also described the statement by President Bola Tinubu that the people in opposition were the cause of hardship and poverty in the country as an escapist defence.
About 63 days to the presidential election, how can you describe the campaigns?
I’m not very comfortable with what is happening, because this is the beginning of what can become very calamitous eventually. I’m not happy that people are being attacked at campaign venues, I’m not happy at all.
What could be attributed to these attacks?
I don’t know; maybe fear or just selfishness. I can’t understand a situation where people going to campaign are attacked. If it is an election, there has to be a campaign. I can’t understand the basis of anybody stopping another person from campaigning. It is very unfortunate that since these things started, no one has been arrested and prosecuted for it.
It’s very, very unfortunate because it’s the beginning of anarchy. My concern is if any of these parties that have been attacked decide to respond, then that’s the beginning of trouble.
The opposition parties are crying of intimidation by the ruling party. They allege that their campaign billboards are not allowed to be mounted in some states, including FCT, and the condition they are given included the payment of huge amounts of money before they can erect billboards. What do you say to this?
This is very unfortunate too, because the law is very clear. Billboards have been described as purely INEC matters, not government matters.
If you want to raise money with billboards, you talk about commercial billboards. The things pertaining to campaigns and elections are purely INEC matters. While the government should wake up right now and begin to force people to pay their money to erect billboards, it’s beyond my understanding. It’s wrong; very, very wrong, and it must be stopped.
However, who said that they cannot campaign without billboards? Let them stop attacking people. If I don’t want billboards, I leave billboards, but it is wrong to stop people from setting up billboards. It’s an INEC matter, not a government matter.
Still on political intolerance, the opposition parties also cry that their posters are not allowed in some states; they are torn into pieces immediately they are posted…
Let me tell you this: My father was a politician; I know somebody who was arrested in 1964 because he tore the poster of a political party, as far back as that. I also know when somebody wanted my father to give them authority to go and tear posters, but my father refused and said that it was illegal. So, I don’t know what is happening now. Are we moving back or forward? If tearing off a poster was a crime in 1964, why should it not be a crime now? Somebody has to give me the answer.
What should be the campaign issues?
All the messages should be people-oriented. We know our problems; give us the solutions if you have any. That’s what every candidate should try to do; proffering solutions to known problems. If I were a candidate, I would concentrate on that, offering solutions to well-known problems. That should be the issue now, nothing else.
What are the well-known problems facing the country?
Our educational system is in jeopardy, security is in jeopardy. These two are core issues; and the economy has not favoured the man in the street. We want to hear the president tell us what he intends to do about these three things. That’s what I want to hear them talk about.
The opposition parties have raised the issue of AI-generated photographs on the INEC register, and the electoral umpire has equally admitted it. What’s your take on this?
A high-powered neutral body made up of political parties and some civil society organisations should now meet with INEC and find out what is happening. I’m concerned about this because I was the lead counsel for President Muhammadu Buhari in 2007. I want to tell you that in that year, the voter registers were in a mess and it appears that we’re going to another election where the voter register is also in a deeper mess.
Now that the Chairman of the INEC, Prof Joash Amupitan has honourably agreed that something went wrong, we want to know the thing that went wrong, and who made it go wrong. The problem is that in this country, we don’t deal with causes, we deal with symptoms. Those people who generated these AI photos should be brought out and prosecuted now because they are joking with the peace and harmony in this country. Others are using AI for technical reasons to develop their countries, but we want to use our own AI to rig the election. It’s unfortunate.
Your party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), at a time the biggest political party in West Africa, doesn’t have a presidential candidate for the 2027 election. What do you say to this?
I learnt they put somebody as their presidential candidate.
But the party said it has endorsed President Tinubu as its candidate?
Whether the presidential candidate is popular or not, the important thing is that there is a presidential candidate. Let us see how the votes of that day go because it is a secret ballot.
The five South East governors met and said they have endorsed President Tinubu as the region’s candidate. What is your take on it?
In their wisdom, they think that is what they ought to do and they have done it. You know that is political.
So, it means that Peter Obi, the presidential candidate from the zone, is like a political orphan?
No. I don’t agree with you because it is even a presumption that the governors control all the votes in their states. Have people not seen on television that some governors scored about five per cent of votes for their presidential candidates in the last election? It could happen again; it could be better this time, but we don’t know.
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The fact that a governor says something doesn’t mean that everybody in the state has to do so. Every presidential candidate will get votes from here and there, in the South East, they’ll get votes, and whoever will win, we shall find out only after voting on the 16th of January next year. Let them say what they want to say, they are entitled to do that.
During the flag off of his re-election campaign in Kaduna about three weeks ago, President Tinubu accused the opposition of causing hardship and hunger in the country. What do you say to that?
It is wrong because I know that when the PDP was in power, dollar was not exchanging for N1, 500; I know that when the PDP was in power, a bag of 50 kg of rice was selling for less than N10,000; I know before APC took over, a litre of fuel was below N100. So, I don’t know what other economies they are talking about.
They came, claiming that they will make it better, and it appears that they have made it worse.
So, let them argue their own case and see those who ruled before they came, and let them explain to the people what happened during their own era; and forget those who came before them because you take over power to correct the wrong of the one who was there before you. If you cannot correct it then you give up.
It’s not a proper defence for APC; it’s an escapist defence for the ruling party.
The party says that the reforms President Tinubu has carried out are so visible that even the blind could see them, and the deaf could hear about them. What is your take on this?
They are entitled to that opinion in their campaign. It is for the people to judge. That is why we’re going to vote; let people decide whether they’ve seen or heard. As a committed natural democrat, my opinion is not the final answer, yours is not the final answer; let’s see what the people will say. If they convince the people, then that is the truth. If they don’t convince the people, well something else has happened. They are entitled to say something that will help them to convince the people and know what they’re doing. They are entitled to campaign.
Many people are asking why Igbo leaders like you should watch and allow attacks being carried out by some prominent Igbo leaders against Peter Obi. What is your position?
Taking my experience as a politician, I think they are indirectly campaigning for Peter Obi. He is capable of defending himself, allow him to do it.
How are they indirectly campaigning for him?
Because they are putting him on the issue; on the marble for people to read and give him a chance to answer. One thing about politics, which is very important, is name and identification. They’re identifying his name very effectively. I don’t see why anyone should worry about it. Obi is not worried about it. Why should I be worried about it?
The threats coming out from politicians are scary. Many of them are threatening that those who don’t vote for them or who rig will be killed. What do these portend for the country’s democracy?
That means that you’ll be there at every polling booth to find out where people vote and begin to shoot at them. How many bullets will you have in this magazine? All this political rhetoric shouldn’t bother anybody. It’s unfortunate that even in 2026 Nigeria, people are making this type of statement. We shouldn’t hear this type of language at this time in our nation, but that we are hearing them. It’s very unfortunate. The authorities that have the responsibility to take care of this, should do something before it gets out of hand.
From the way things are going, do you entertain any fears in this 2027 election?
The fear is very palpable, but God will prevent anything very bad from happening, I pray.
Why do Nigerians keep on disturbing God? What they can easily do, they want God to come down and do it for them… The day you ask God to stop doing something for you; you have already destroyed yourself. We keep asking Him to do for us; He is not tired of us. If somebody feels that God is tired of him, I don’t think that He is tired of me. So, I keep asking Him; I keep praying to Him, and we should keep on praying to Him. There is no too much prayer to God; it will never be too much.
As a way of cushioning the hardship, the president said he has carried out measures to reduce the cost of foodstuffs, N50,000 cash transfers to the poor. You are close to the grassroots in Imo State. Have they started these packages?
Not to my knowledge. Maybe, those who got it are hiding the facts, but nobody has told me that he or she has got anything. I have not got anything myself, I have problems; I have economic problems, so I should get a share of it. I haven’t got any.
You are asking me, have you got your own share? If they are distributing money, it should reach everybody. Nobody has told me that he’s got a share of it. I’m saying that it should go around.
It is only for the poor, not for the rich.
How do you assess who is poor and who is rich? What is the parameter for doing that?
I haven’t seen anybody who said he or she has received such money. I’m saying that if money should be shared, please it should go round and let everybody get a share. I expect the traditional ruler to nominate the poor people. How can somebody in Abuja tell me who is poor in my own community?
I don’t know which poor people they have listed to receive the money. I didn’t say that the president didn’t speak the truth; all I’m saying is that those who are sharing it should be more generous and more democratic about it, so that it will not end up in one person’s pockets.
About 28 states Assembly have consented to the state police bill and it remains the president’s ascent. What is your view on this development?
I’ve said several times that I know I hold a super minority opinion on this matter; I don’t support the state police, but since the majority of Nigerians want it, let us have it and see how it works. Left to me, I don’t support it. And I’ve not changed my mind, but I’m a democrat; I’m a super minority on this issue, and I accept that position.
What’s your grouse against it?
It is because I know how rural police were misused before the war. My father was a politician, and was contesting election as an independent candidate. I was in Class Two in secondary school then and I know what happened everywhere.
