Quiet talks about 2027 are already under way, and on Thursday Rotimi Amaechi, ex-Minister of Transportation, told the African Democratic Congress to think hard about where its presidential candidate comes from.
Addressing party members in Kano, Amaechi called the decision a make-or-break moment.
He said the choice must tick three boxes: proven ability, a vision that speaks to younger Nigerians, and respect for the country’s unwritten rule of rotating power between north and south.
“First is capacity, second is age, and the third is to respect the unwritten law of power rotation—this is the south’s turn,” he said.
Letting the south finish “its eight-year cycle,” he argued, keeps the country steadier and stops needless quarrels.
Running a northerner next year, when many southern voters feel it is still their time, would make campaigns uphill, he warned.
“If you elect somebody from the north—I’m not saying we won’t campaign—but convincing the south to give up power will be tough,” he told the room.
Still, Amaechi added, party unity comes first. “Whether it’s a southerner or a northerner is immaterial. I’ll support whoever wins the primary,” he pledged.
The former Rivers governor had already said in July 2025 that, if the ADC picks him, he would serve only one four-year term to let power swing back north without a fight.
Daily Trust notes that Amaechi’s pitch lands as the ADC wrestles with zoning. Two heavyweights, ex-VP Atiku Abubakar and Labour’s Peter Obi, have big regional blocs and insist they will run. Talk of an Obi–Kwankwaso joint ticket is also swirling.
