Human Rights Activist Dele Farotimi Supports Peter Obi’s One-Term Presidency Proposal, Criticizes Past Leaders’ Legacy
Human rights lawyer and activist Dele Farotimi has expressed strong support for presidential hopeful Peter Obi’s proposal for a single-term presidency in Nigeria.
Farotimi argued that Nigeria’s former leaders, including Olusegun Obasanjo and Muhammadu Buhari, wasted their extended time in office without delivering meaningful progress.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Monday, Farotimi said, “Obasanjo had eight years; what did he do with it? Buhari had eight years; what did he do with it? He ruined Nigeria. Tinubu has had two years, and he is taking us back 50 years.”
Farotimi emphasized that the length of time in office is less important than the quality and impact of leadership. “It’s not really about how much time the person spends; it’s a function of what they do with the time that they have,” he added.
The activist first encountered Obi’s one-term presidency idea during the last election cycle and expressed enthusiasm about the potential for meaningful change within a limited timeframe.
“If I ever run for the presidency of Nigeria, I wouldn’t require more than two years to do everything I need to do. You don’t need a long term to achieve lasting change, but the question should be: what does he intend to do with the one term?” Farotimi said.
Peter Obi has consistently pledged to serve only a single four-year term if elected, a commitment he reiterated during a popular X Space session in June. More recently, Obi proposed extending the single term to five years, drawing parallels to South Korea’s presidential system where re-election is not permitted.
Obi said, “If I have the opportunity, we should stop having a second tenure for presidents. It should be five years. That is what is in South Korea, so people come in and know that they have a job to do.”
The proposal has sparked diverse reactions across Nigeria, with some citizens questioning its feasibility and others welcoming it as a bold step toward curbing political stagnation.
