Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago of Niger State, last month, delivered what could be considered a brutal truth, which many in his position would shy away from.
It takes courage for someone in such a privileged position as a governor to admit publicly the failures of a system of government in which he is a beneficiary.
Bago who was speaking at the swearing-in of newly appointed commissioners and local government council chairmen, as well as some permanent secretaries and members of some Boards and Agencies observed that the fear of losing an election for a second term in office discourages an incumbent governor in his first term from taking some decisive steps that could have promoted development in the state.
In essence, the incumbent would not want to take any action that would amount to stepping on the toes of those who may be instrumental to his reelection even if it will be in the interest of the people.
According to Governor Bago, “there are some steps I ought to have taken to move the state forward but I dare not because of fear that taking such decisions would affect my victory in 2027.
For example, some people who failed examinations and should have been sanctioned one way or the other could not be punished because of second-term ambition.
He therefore advocated a single term for governors. “As the Governor, I am preoccupied with the search for a second term in office and as a result, governance is suffering and this is why one term is better to serve because you will be more focused from the beginning to the end of your one term tenure,” he remarked.
Proposals for a single term for governors and president is not new in the country. In fact, it was part of the resolutions of the 2014 Confab Report.
But now we have a serving governor in his first term who is courageous enough to share his experience in governance and comes out boldly to advocate a single term for governors. Many Nigerians have therefore declared their support for Governor Bago’s proposal and called for an amendment of the constitution.
