Former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, has said he will only stay in office for one term if he becomes the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in the 2027 elections.
Amaechi made this statement on Thursday while speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today, hosted by Seun Okinbaloye.
He noted that his decision to run for just one term is tied to the current political balance in Nigeria. According to Amaechi, the power-sharing system between the northern and southern regions should be respected.
He explained that since President Bola Tinubu, who is from the south, is expected to complete one term, a new president from the south should also do only one term, making way for the north afterward.
“For now, the way Nigeria is, you must stick to that unwritten agreement that says south eight years, north eight years,” Amaechi, also a former Rivers State governor, said.
He recalled his role during the previous administration, where he stood against the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) for not honoring what he described as a similar agreement.
“I led the fight against the PDP government because there was an agreement that the government at that time will spend four years and after four years the government reneged and I said ‘No, that would be unfair, that would be instability at its peak because the north will react’ so the best thing to do is to support a northern candidate to continue the balance of power, just like I will be among those saying to the north ‘The south must be allowed to complete their tenure.’”
When asked directly by the host if he was ready to commit to only one term, Amaechi replied: “Of course.”
He further added, “Nigerians know that I speak my mind. Nigerians know that what I cannot do I will not say,” when asked if he could be trusted to keep this promise.
