Former Minister of Transportation and ex-Governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi, has declared that he would serve only one term if elected president in 2027, citing the importance of preserving Nigeria’s fragile power-sharing arrangement.
Speaking during a television interview on Thursday, Amaechi stressed the need to honour the country’s unwritten agreement on power rotation between the North and the South. “Of course. I told you. You know that I speak my mind,” he said when asked whether he would serve only four years if given the presidential ticket by the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
Nigeria operates an informal rotational presidency system, with the presidency alternating between the two major regions. President Bola Tinubu, from the South-West, succeeded Muhammadu Buhari from the North-West after the latter completed two terms from 2015 to 2023.
“For now, the way Nigeria is, you must keep to that agreement—unwritten agreement—that says South eight years, North eight years,” Amaechi emphasized.
He added that allowing the South to complete its tenure is crucial for national stability, especially following his own role in campaigning for a northern presidency in 2015. “I led the fight against the PDP government. Why? Because there was an agreement that the government at that time would spend four years. But after four years, the government reneged on it, and I said no, that would be unfair. That will be instability at its peak because the North will react.”
Amaechi maintained that just as he supported the North to retain power in 2015 for equity, he now believes the South must be allowed to complete its turn. “Just like I will be among those saying to the North that the South must be allowed to complete its tenure. If the South is not allowed to complete its tenure, then I have made a mistake in supporting it.”
Although the newly formed ADC-led coalition has not yet publicly resolved the issue of zoning, Amaechi’s stance signals his strong support for a southern presidency limited to a single four-year term, should he emerge as the coalition’s candidate.
