Former Rivers State governor and ex-Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, has affirmed his commitment to honoring Nigeria’s informal regional power-sharing arrangement and pledged to serve only a single term if elected president in 2027.
Speaking on Politics Today on Channels Television on Thursday, Amaechi was clear about his stance when asked about his term length.
“Of course. I told you. You know that I speak my mind,” he responded to questions about whether he would serve only one term under the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
“If I won’t do more than four years, I would say that. If I were to do more than four years, I would say I would do more than four,” he added, underscoring his openness and transparency.
Amaechi reiterated his belief in the unwritten regional rotational presidency “the way Nigeria is, you must keep to that agreement—unwritten agreement—that says South eight years, North eight years.”
The former minister explained that he had previously advocated for power to return to the North in 2015, emphasizing that breaking the rotational agreement would cause instability.
“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. So, the best thing to do is what? It is to support a northern candidate to continue the balance of power.”
He then turned his attention to the South: “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.”
