The publisher of NN News Media, Nkiruka Nistoran, has publicly challenged presidential aide Bayo Onanuga over the ongoing debate about power rotation in Nigeria, calling for a clearer definition of what truly counts as a southern presidency.
In a post shared on her X account, Nistoran argued that if the goal is to ensure a genuine southern presidency, then President Bola Tinubu should step aside and allow the position to be zoned to the Southeast. According to her, anything short of that cannot fairly be described as southern representation.
She argued that the Southwest has already held a long stretch of top national leadership positions. She said this includes about 12 years at the presidency level with President Bola Tinubu currently serving a 4 year term, along with 8 years previously served in the vice presidency, bringing the combined total to around 20 years in her political calculation.
Based on this view, she believes this length of time shows the Southwest has already had significant advantage in national leadership and argues that any claim of true southern representation should now shift to the Southeast instead of remaining within the Southwest or staying broadly open to all regions.
Nistoran added that if the presidency is not specifically zoned to the Southeast, then the contest should remain open to all regions. In that case, she expressed confidence that Atiku Abubakar would not only run again in 2027 but could emerge victorious. She ended her remarks with a firm statement urging critics to accept that possibility.
Her comments were made in response to an earlier statement by Onanuga, who criticized Atiku Abubakar’s repeated attempts to contest the presidency. Onanuga argued that Atiku has consistently ignored Nigeria’s informal power rotation agreement between the North and South.
He recalled that during the 2023 election, Atiku, as a member of the Peoples Democratic Party, went against his party’s zoning principle by contesting to succeed another northern president who had already completed eight years in office. According to Onanuga, this decision caused internal divisions within the party and contributed to Atiku’s defeat at the polls.
Onanuga further claimed that Atiku appears ready to repeat the same strategy ahead of the next election, predicting another major loss if he proceeds. He described Atiku as a long time candidate who continues to pursue the presidency despite previous setbacks.
Referencing a recent interview, Onanuga said Atiku has again questioned the North South rotation system, arguing that the South has held power longer since 1999. He dismissed this claim as misleading, explaining that the shorter tenure of the North was largely due to the death of President Umaru Yar’Adua, which led to Goodluck Jonathan taking over.
According to Onanuga, this unexpected event should not be used to undermine the broader principle of rotating power between regions. He insisted that since former President Muhammadu Buhari completed two full terms, President Tinubu should also be allowed to serve his full tenure.
He concluded by advising Atiku to abandon any plans to run again in 2027, maintaining that it remains the South’s turn to hold the presidency.
The exchange highlights growing tensions and differing interpretations of fairness, zoning, and regional representation as political actors begin positioning themselves ahead of the next election cycle.
