2027: Presidency still open, constitution doesn’t recognise zoning — Dele Momodu replies Fintiri

2026-03-04 - 11:47

By Luminous Jannamike, ABUJA Chieftain of the African Democratic Congress, Dele Momodu, has disagreed with Adamawa State Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri over calls to bar northern aspirants from the 2027 presidential race, saying Nigeria’s constitution does not recognise zoning and that the contest remains open. The intervention throws fresh light on the lingering North–South debate ahead of 2027 and suggests the opposition is unwilling to be boxed into a rigid power-rotation arrangement as early political positioning gathers pace. Momodu spoke on Wednesday during an interview on Sunrise Daily, a breakfast programme on Channels Television. “On the issue of North–South rotation, those who have nothing better to say focus on that. The Constitution of Nigeria is supreme, and it does not mention zoning. And even if you want to talk about whether zoning has been fair to a particular region in the South or in the North, you will see that Nigeria has been fair to the South (since 1999),” Momodu said. Momodu also used the interview to question the performance of the ruling All Progressives Congress under President Bola Tinubu, asking whether Nigerians were better off today than under the previous administration. “To ask the electorate: is your life better today than it was when Buhari was in power? Now, the APC is supposed to be an offshoot of the Buhari administration, yet every day it is the APC itself that is blaming Buhari, blaming others,” he added. The ADC chieftain dismissed official claims of exchange-rate stability, arguing that the government had not fully explained the broader economic picture to Nigerians. “Now they say, ‘Oh yes, they stabilised the exchange rate against the dollar.’ I laugh. They forgot to tell us where the dollar was when they took power,” he said. On fuel subsidy removal and borrowing, Momodu said many Nigerians were still struggling to see positive results from the policies. “When they talk about everything—you removed fuel subsidy, for one—you have not been able to tell us how it has affected poverty in Nigeria. All the people are feeling is the negative effect of the subsidy removal. You have taken more loans than all previous governments of Nigeria combined, yet we have not seen the effect of those loans,” Momodu said. The ADC figure further alleged that the ruling party was uncomfortable with rising political competition. “One thing is clear: the APC is jittery. APC does not want competition, especially at the presidential level. That is why they are sowing seeds of discord from party to party... That is why they will hold some people and not hold others,” Momodu added. Responding to concerns about the readiness of the ADC, he urged supporters not to panic, saying the party was being deliberate in its strategy. “My dear brother, there is nothing to worry about. Strategy is strategy. We cannot use Tinubu’s strategy... we have to factor in how we will navigate and meander around his strategy to get him out of the seat,” he said. Momodu said voter behaviour, especially among unaffiliated Nigerians, could ultimately decide the next election. “The biggest opposition in the world are the floaters. They don’t belong to any party, but on election day you will see how they come out in large numbers to vote against an oppressive government and defend their votes,” he said. He maintained that the party would meet all regulatory requirements despite disagreements with some provisions. “ADC will comply. Even where we disagree with some of the requirements, ADC is strong enough. I am very confident. I know what is going on behind the scenes. Many people going into APC are not finding what they expected,” he said.