Six-Year Single Term is a Distraction, Focus on Credible Elections — Adewole Adebayo

The presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Prince Adewole Adebayo, has dismissed the proposed six-year single tenure for the president and governors, describing the debate as a distraction from the country's need for electoral integrity.

The presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Prince Adewole Adebayo, has rejected proposals seeking to introduce a single six-year term for Nigeria's president and state governors, arguing that tenure limits are not the root of the country's political challenges.

Adebayo made his position known during a television interview on Wednesday, reacting to recent plans by the Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, to sponsor a bill aimed at establishing a single six-year term for elected executive officeholders.

While proponents of the bill argue that a single tenure would remove the pressures and distractions associated with seeking a second term, Adebayo insisted that the country’s primary focus should be on ensuring credible and transparent elections.

Describing the tenure debate as "idle talk," the SDP standard-bearer stated that the duration a leader spends in office is irrelevant if the electoral system remains flawed.

“It's a distraction. These are all idle talks. A six-year term, a four-year term—that's not the problem. The problem is that you have to have a system that works,” Adebayo said.

According to him, Nigeria needs to prioritise building a robust political framework where the outcomes of elections genuinely reflect the choices made by voters at the polls, free from manipulation or irregularities.

“You have to have a political system where the voter decides the winner, where nobody watches INEC as if you are watching a secret society, and where political parties raise ideas and raise new people,” he added.

Adebayo stressed that electoral reform must take precedence over constitutional debates about how long executives stay in power. He noted that his focus is on eliminating election rigging and ensuring that voters are allowed to freely exercise their franchise.

He further maintained that the current constitutional provision, which allows for a four-year term with the possibility of a second term, is adequate, provided the leaders are chosen through a fair democratic process.

“I think the present system of four years—and if you are good enough, you go for another four years—is good enough if the people who are actually going to government are going there only by winning a free, fair, and credible election. We should focus on that now,” Adebayo concluded.

The proposed six-year single term bill is expected to be formally introduced when the 11th Senate resumes, a move that is already sparking widespread debate among political stakeholders ahead of the 2027 general elections.