Former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has dismissed the promises made by Peter Obi and Rotimi Amaechi to serve for only one term if elected president in 2027, insisting that such commitments are unrealistic and unconvincing.
El-Rufai made the remarks on Sunday night while appearing on Sunday Politics, a Channels TV programme.
Obi, the 2023 Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate and former Anambra State governor, recently pledged to serve for just four years if he secures the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential ticket. Similarly, Amaechi, a former Rivers State governor and ex-minister of transportation, has made the same promise under the ADC platform.
But El-Rufai, also a member of the ADC coalition, was blunt in his criticism.
“Now, on the question of people coming out and saying, ‘I will do one term,’ I don’t think anyone believes that,” El-Rufai declared. “I don’t think it is right. You should not constitutionally give up what is yours.”
Drawing from his experience, the former governor argued that a four-year term was too short to effect real change.
“As someone who has been governor for eight years—and Rotimi Amaechi and Peter Obi have both been governors—they know the time it takes to make meaningful change in government. Four years is not enough,” he said.
He urged politicians to refrain from making promises that voters no longer trust.
“So, I want to appeal to everyone to stop making these commitments of ‘I will do four years’ or ‘I will do eight years,’ because nobody believes you,” El-Rufai added.
The single-term pledge by Obi and Amaechi is widely seen as an attempt to gain the endorsement of the ADC and adhere to an informal rotational power-sharing arrangement between the North and South. By 2027, President Bola Tinubu, a Southerner, would have completed four years in office.
Although El-Rufai has not declared his interest in the ADC presidential ticket, there are growing indications that he may join the race as the opposition coalition positions itself to challenge President Tinubu in 2027.
