Recently, the Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, presented his Deputy Governor, Hamzat Obafemi, to party leaders and members as his successor in 2027. In the same vein, Governors Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State and Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State endorsed Senators Adeola Solomon and Wadada Ahmed as their preferred successors. These outgoing Governors are planning painstakingly to anoint or impose their preferred successors on their parties and states. There are strong indications that other Governors currently serving their second tenures are working assiduously to present their own anointed governorship aspirants to the electorate after consultations with relevant stakeholders. In politics, anointing or endorsing aspirants is nothing but a third-term agenda or political godfatherism.
At a meeting with Owerri Zone political leaders and key stakeholders held on Wednesday, August 20, 2025, at Imo Government House, Governor Hope Uzodimma said that he lacked the power to handpick his successor. He disclosed that his successor would emerge from his political party through a democratic process, which is the party’s primary election. Although the Independent National Electoral Commission is yet to roll out the election timetable for the 2027 off-cycle party primaries for governorship elections in Bayelsa, Kogi and Imo states, many members of APC and other political parties from the three senatorial districts of Imo State are eyeing the Imo governorship seat. With the release of the amended INEC 2027 election timetable fixing party primaries between April 23, 2026 and May 30, 2026, ruling political parties at all levels are expected to conduct their elective posts and governorship primary elections freely and fairly within the stipulated time frame.
Politically, it will be risky for Governors to anoint or impose their preferred successors on the political parties or their states through undue interference, inducements or manipulation of the party primaries to favour preferred aspirants or senatorial districts at the detriment of other aspirants or districts. As fathers and indefatigable leaders of the political parties in their states, the Governors should be impartial and neutral before, during and after the primary elections. Political successions are very difficult to plan and execute in a democracy. Many former Governors tried to anoint their deputies, in-laws or cronies and met strong resistance and opposition. The few who scaled the hurdles were aided by a number of factors including power of incumbency, functional political structures, arbitrary use of state resources, desperation for perpetuation or elongation of tenure, unbridled quest for concealment of atrocities and embezzlement of public funds from detection and investigation by anti-graft agencies. Interestingly, the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended, and the Electoral Amendment Act 2026 neither conferred the right of choice of preferred successors on the President nor State Governors. The Constitution and the Electoral Act did not make provisions for rotation of political power among senatorial districts in the country. Aside from eroding public confidence in the electoral process, godfatherism through anointing or imposing aspirants by outgoing Governors is anti-democracy. Imposition of aspirants at party primaries does not translate into winning general elections. It rather encourages intra-party crises, enthronement of mediocrity and feuds between godfathers and godsons. A typical example is the recent rift between the Governor of Rivers State and the Minister of FCT, which resulted in the declaration of a six-month state of emergency. The former Rivers State Governor preferred a civil servant to his deputy. Available records show that most of the former Governors did not want their deputies or endorsed preferred aspirants to succeed them for obvious reasons. At the stage of primary elections, Governors on second tenures are expected to provide a level playing field for all the aspirants wishing to succeed them to test their acceptability and popularity. The Governors can adopt either the consensus method or direct method or both in case of any eventuality. It is after this stage that those who emerge as parties’ flagbearers should be supported by centrifugal and centripetal forces to scale through the main elections. At this point, power of incumbency is an added advantage but must not be abused. Again, if all grievances arising from the party primaries are not adequately resolved to the satisfaction of aggrieved party members and the flagbearers, the Governors must expect the unexpected. This includes massive cross-carpeting to other political parties waiting in the wings to pick their tickets and sabotage against the parties and their candidates. The ruling parties may become opposition political parties before the general elections if there are massive defections.
In Imo State, many eminently qualified, tested and trusted technocrats from different political parties and districts are jostling to occupy Imo Government House to contribute their own quota to the development of democracy and Imo State in particular. But they have not declared their intentions publicly.
The next stage of the problem is political campaign. At this stage, the Governors will traverse the length and breadth of their states to present the flagbearers to the people and to solicit their votes. A lot needs to be done at this critical stage to convince the electorate. This stage determines the success or otherwise of the parties at the polls. At this stage also, the Governors and their preferred successors make promises of heaven on earth to the people. However, it is left for the people to accept or reject such electoral promises at the polls.
The last but not the least stage of the problem is voting. With the partial amendment to the section of the Electoral Act relating to electronic transmission of election results, the majority of Nigerians are optimistic that electoral malpractices and irregularities will be drastically reduced in the 2027 general elections. Nigerians would not tolerate the imposition of a presidential aspirant on the voters or Governors’ preferred successors. Most importantly, citizens’ votes must not only count but also reflect their will. But before going to the polls, the people must decide which political party rules at the federal level and who governs them at the state level. The electorate will be guided by the principles of democratic governance, which require aspirants to be accountable and responsible to the people after winning elections and not the other way round. A number of factors will guide the decisions and choices of the people. They include but are not limited to the profile, intellectual capacities and landmark achievements of the aspirants seeking elective posts, achievements of the President seeking re-election for a second term and those of the Governors endorsing preferred successors in the areas of good governance, provision of basic amenities and facilities, security of lives and property of Nigerians and residents, healthcare, agriculture, industrialization and job creation, youth and women empowerment, education, culture and tourism. Others are indebtedness of the President seeking re-election and Governors anointing preferred successors to workers at all levels in relation to payment of salaries and salary arrears, implementation of the national minimum wage and consequential adjustments, payment of pensions and gratuities. The preferred aspirants of Governors owing arrears of salaries, promotions, pensions and gratuities as well as non-implementation of the national minimum wage and consequential adjustments will be roundly rejected at the polls.
Another important factor that may influence the decisions and choices of the citizens is the geo-political zones and senatorial districts of the aspirants. It will be most unfortunate and ridiculous for Governors’ anointed or preferred successors to fail elections. Many sections and zones of the country are subjected to socio-economic and political marginalization while a few have monopolized political power over the years. There is therefore need for power rotation among the zones and districts to ensure equity, fairness and justice. For instance, in Imo State, Orlu Zone has dominated and monopolized the Imo governorship seat for several years, while Owerri Zone, which is the worst hit, is agitating against political marginalization. Okigwe Zone is strongly alleging that Owerri Zone connived with Orlu Zone to truncate the zone’s second term in 2012. While making reference to the Imo Charter of Equity, Okigwe Zone still maintains that there can be no equity without fairness and justice in the scheme of things in the state. The zone, which is demanding an additional four years to complete its second term, appears uncomfortable, dissatisfied and embittered with the recent decision by the Imo Council of Elders to cede the Imo governorship seat to Owerri Zone. With scepticism, doubts and palpable fears expressed in some quarters about the legality of the Imo Charter of Equity, all the aspirants from Owerri and Okigwe senatorial districts should be allowed to go to the polls with the support of Orlu senatorial district. After all, in a democracy, power is not given but taken through the ballot box. To this end, the idea of anointing or endorsing preferred successors should be jettisoned because of problems associated with the process.
