Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu has proposed that a six-year single tenure is adopted for elective officials like President, Senators, Governors, and others, to promote unity and loyalty to the nation, putting a stop to the traditional quest for second term.
Ekweremadu made this known at the 3rd Adada Lecture titled “Restructuring and the Nigeria Youth”, organized by Association of Nsukka Professors.
According to Mr. Ekweremadu, single six-year tenure should be adopted for Presidency so that it can be rotated across the six-geo-political regions in the Country.
“Restructuring with devolution of power at the centre would reduce political tension as well as make the centre unattractive.”
He further stated that restructuring the Country would give room for regions to control and manage its resources given that the black gold was undergoing shock in the global oil market.
Mr. Ekweremadu also called on the youths to advocate and support restructuring as it would create employment and guarantee better future.
He identified ethnic and religious sentiment, ignorance and fear of the unknown as some of the challenges facing restructuring.
“The market for crude oil is reducing by the day as countries like Britain and France now have laws that will ban the use of diesel and petrol cars by 2030.”
Ekweremadu has been advocating for single tenure since 2013 when the Senate Constitution Review Committee led by him, submitted its final report.
In amending Section 135 (2), Clause 11 states thus: “Subject to the provision of Subsection 1 of this Section, the President shall vacate his office at the expiration of a period of six years, commencing from the date when he took the oath of allegiance and the oath of office.”
It led to a disagreement between the House of Representatives and the Senate which later led to its rejection.
Mexico is the only Country where a six-year single tenure is being practiced and its known as Sexeno.
No one who holds the office even on a caretaker basis is permitted to run for or hold the office again, with the intention of preventing Presidential dictatorship.
Analysts have also given their views on the debate. While some support the single term as it would promote governance and equal representation, others argue that it would give room to abandon projects and a constraint to continuity and predictability, also opining that such would give little room for accountability.
They also believed it would be a blow to presidential accountability.
