Sen Bamidele seeks advocates one-term six-year tenure for presidents, governors

The Leader of the Senate, Opeyemi Bamidele, has unveiled plans to champion a major constitutional amendment that would replace Nigeria’s current two-term executive system with a single six-year tenure for presidents and state governors.

According to the senior lawmaker, the proposed reform is aimed at reducing the political distractions associated with re-election campaigns and enabling elected leaders to dedicate more time to governance and policy delivery.

Speaking with journalists in his office on Tuesday, Bamidele disclosed that the bill ranks among the key legislative initiatives he intends to pursue in the next Senate following the 2027 general elections.

Under the existing provisions of the 1999 Constitution, presidents and governors may serve a maximum of two four-year terms. However, Bamidele argued that the structure often pushes officeholders into campaign mode long before completing their first mandate.

Explaining the rationale behind the proposal, he said:

“One of the first set of bills that I look forward to moving, by God’s grace, when we come back for the 11th Senate, God willing, is for a bill that will only make it possible for anyone who wants to be president of this country, or governor in any part of this country, to spend only one term of six years.”

He maintained that a single tenure would free elected officials from the pressure of securing another mandate and encourage them to concentrate fully on their responsibilities from the outset.

“So that you don’t even have to worry about wasting almost one and a half years of your first term thinking and struggling and looking forward to how you’ll be re-elected.

“If you know you are there for six years, only one tenure, you put in your best from day one. You know this is the only chance that you have,” Bamidele said.

The Senate leader acknowledged that the proposal is unlikely to enjoy universal support but insisted that lawmakers have a responsibility to initiate reforms they believe could strengthen governance and democratic institutions.

“That’s my opinion. It doesn’t mean everybody will agree with me. But it also does not mean that I am prevented from doing that because that has not been the law,” he said.

Bamidele further stressed that legal frameworks must evolve in response to emerging realities and national needs.

“The essence of law, the essence of parliament, is that laws are like human beings; they grow,” he added.

His proposal is expected to reopen a longstanding national conversation about executive tenure and constitutional restructuring. Advocates of a single-term system have consistently argued that it would reduce political maneuvering, lower election-related tensions and provide leaders with greater freedom to pursue long-term development programmes without the burden of campaigning for a second term.

The idea has surfaced repeatedly since Nigeria’s return to democratic governance in 1999. Most recently, Atiku Abubakar, former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, proposed a similar six-year single tenure for presidents and governors, alongside a constitutional arrangement for rotating the presidency among Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones.

Supporters believe such a system could promote stability and policy continuity. Opponents, however, argue that the current two-term arrangement gives citizens the opportunity to either reward successful leaders with a second mandate or remove underperforming administrations through the ballot box.

Should the proposal eventually secure passage in the National Assembly, it would require substantial amendments to the Constitution and would also need the endorsement of at least two-thirds of Nigeria’s state Houses of Assembly before becoming law.