2027 Presidency Must Be a Joint Decision Between North and South Says Sani
A member of the Board of Trustees of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), Mr. Anthony Sani, has said that no region in Nigeria—North or South—can solely decide who becomes president in 2027. He was responding to recent remarks made by Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, a Northern Elders Forum (NEF) chieftain and former political adviser to Vice President Kashim Shettima.
Baba-Ahmed had earlier claimed in an interview that no politician can win the 2027 presidential election without Northern support. He noted that the North would soon determine its political path and decide which direction to follow in the upcoming elections. He added that while the North remains open to alliances, it will not depend on others to choose a leader. “Nobody can become president of Nigeria without northern support,” he stated.
However, Sani pointed out that while Baba-Ahmed’s views are constitutionally correct, they only represent part of the reality. He emphasized that the presidency requires the backing of both the North and South. In a message to the Nigerian Tribune, Sani noted that the 1999 Constitution demands not just a majority of votes, but also a wide geographical spread—specifically, at least 25% of the votes in two-thirds of Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
“No single region has 24 states,” Sani explained. “This means no one can become president without support from both the North and the South. What Baba-Ahmed said is true, but it’s also true that the South holds the same power.”
He said the purpose of this requirement is to encourage national unity and collaboration across regions. The electoral spread rule, he added, is a deliberate feature of the Constitution, designed to prevent any one region from dominating the political process.
Sani stressed the need for synergy between Nigeria’s regions, especially as the 2027 elections draw closer. According to him, true national leadership can only be achieved when all parts of the country work together to elect a president who understands and addresses the issues affecting citizens from every corner of Nigeria.
