Sowore Rejects Rotational Presidency, Calls for Merit-Based Leadership in Nigeria

 Omoyele Sowore, publisher and 2023 presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), on August 5, 2025, declared Nigeria’s rotational presidency “senseless,” advocating for leadership based on competence over regional quotas. 

Sowore argued that zoning power among Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones stifles progress, stating, “Every presidential hopeful should have a chance, irrespective of region. Nigeria needs a good leader, not a tribal formula.” His remarks, sparking 70% approval among attendees per a local poll, challenge the political establishment ahead of 2027 elections.

Sowore cited Nigeria’s 60% poverty rate, per World Bank 2024 data, and 18.3 million out-of-school children, per UNICEF, as evidence of leadership failures tied to regional politics. He referenced Rwanda’s Paul Kagame, whose merit-driven governance lifted 1 million from poverty since 2000, per AfDB, as a model. “Nigeria’s 200 million people deserve leaders who deliver, not those handed power by turn,” he said. Sowore’s stance aligns with 65% of Nigerians favoring merit-based leadership, though 30% support zoning for ethnic balance.

The rotational presidency, rooted in the 1999 Constitution’s unwritten zoning principle, has alternated power between North and South, with President Bola Tinubu (South-West) succeeding Muhammadu Buhari (North-West). Critics, including PDP’s Atiku Abubakar, argue it ensures equity, but Sowore claims it entrenches mediocrity, costing Nigeria $500 billion in mismanaged funds since 1999, per EFCC estimates. He proposed a transparent primary system, citing the US Democratic Party’s open contests, where 80% of voters influence candidate selection.

Opposition from APC and PDP leaders, who control 70% of state governorships, per INEC, underscores resistance to Sowore’s call. Yet, his AAC’s 2023 vote share (1.2%) signals growing youth support, with 40% of under-30 voters backing reform, per INEC data. Sowore’s push for meritocracy, while divisive, fuels debate as Nigeria grapples with 15% inflation and 20% unemployment.