Former presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC) and human rights activist, Omoyele Sowore, has dismissed the ongoing debate over rotational presidency in Nigeria as senseless.
Speaking on Tuesday during an appearance on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily, Sowore emphasized that national discourse should shift from regional origin to leadership competence and the capacity to govern effectively.
He said, “If I have a good president in Nigeria who can run this country very well, I don’t care where he comes from.”
Sowore emphasized that what most Nigerians want is quality leadership, not zoning or regional politics.
He noted that the idea of the Nigerian federation is to give every federating unit a fair opportunity, not to limit leadership choices by region.
He added, “That is what the majority of the Nigerian people are aspiring for. That is the idea of this federation that all the federating units should be able to have an opportunity.”
Criticising the zoning formula further, Sowore said, “When you zone it to the north, the majority of the northerners would want to take a shot at it. When you zone it back to the south, the south of Nigeria is not Yoruba or Igbo alone. It is just senseless.”
He insisted that presidential hopefuls should be judged based on qualifications, character, and their manifestos, rather than their ethnic or geo-political backgrounds.
“Zoning the presidency to the worst character in the country is not going to make you get anywhere,” he said.
According to him, the solution lies in open, competitive elections where all aspirants have the opportunity to present their ideas to the people.
He said, “Give everybody a chance. That is why they said, ‘Come and contest for president, governor, local government chairman, and present your agenda, speak to us, and we will look at your character, exposure, and vote for you’.”
