mainstream political calculations, deepening fault lines threatening both national cohesion and democratic growth, SEYE OLUMIDE reports.
While the 1999 Constitution did not expressly recognise rotation and zoning of power as a means to promote inclusivity, the unfolding political discourse suggests that raw ethnic considerations are increasingly overshadowing policy, competence, and national interest.
Historically, ethnicity has played a defining role in Nigerian politics. Yet, in the current climate, this factor appears particularly volatile. The North is vociferously agitating for power to return to the region after President Bola Tinubu completes his first term, citing what it describes as historical inequities in power distribution since the country’s return to democracy in 1999.
In response, the South-West insists on completing an uninterrupted eight-year term, arguing that it has already been guaranteed leadership under the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) arrangements.
Simultaneously, the South-East is intensifying its call for inclusion, stressing that it has never produced a president in Nigeria’s democratic history.
