Any politician who says that should be sent to a psychiatric hospital. That person certainly has a mental problem
Anambra State Governor, Professor Chukwuma Charles Soludo, has dismissed the idea of any politician voluntarily choosing to serve a single term in office, describing such a proposition as illogical and worthy of psychiatric examination.
Governor Soludo made the remarks during a political endorsement rally held in Anambra South, where he formally declared his intention to seek re-election for a second term. Addressing party faithful and supporters, Soludo challenged those who advocate for one-term pledges to cite any historical precedent where such a promise was made and honoured in Nigeria’s democratic history.
“How can anyone with a functioning brain say they’ll serve only one term? Do they think they’re talking to fools?” Soludo asked rhetorically. “Any politician who says that should be sent to a psychiatric hospital. That person certainly has a mental problem.”
According to the governor, the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria clearly allows elected executive officeholders — such as governors and presidents — to serve up to two terms of four years each. He insisted there is no legal or rational basis for voluntarily limiting oneself to a single term in a democracy where continuity and long-term planning are crucial.
Soludo’s comments appear to be a direct, though unnamed, response to recent remarks by former Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi.
As reported by IREPORT247NEWS in early July, Obi declared during a television appearance that he would willingly accept to serve just one term in office if elected president in 2027 — particularly if such an arrangement were the product of a national consensus or coalition agreement aimed at promoting unity and rotating power back to the North by 2031.
Obi, who ran for president in 2023 and is expected to contest again in 2027, argued that a single four-year term is sufficient to lay the foundation for good governance and national transformation. Speaking on Channels Television’s political programme, Obi said:
“Four years is enough to understand the issues and begin to address them. You don’t need to solve every problem overnight.”
Pressed by host Seun Okinbaloye on whether he was making a firm one-term pledge, Obi responded without hesitation: “Absolutely. I mean it completely. You may not achieve 100 per cent results, but what Nigerians expect is 100 per cent effort and sacrifice.”
I Only Need Four Years to Fix Nigeria – Peter Obi
While acknowledging that four years may not be enough to resolve all of Nigeria’s challenges, Obi stressed that sincere leadership and deliberate reforms can set the country on the right course within a single term.
Governor Soludo, however, sees such a promise as unrealistic and potentially deceptive, suggesting that politicians making such statements are either insincere or unaware of the complex demands of governance.