The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has said he is unlikely to seek the presidency again after the 2027 general election, pointing to Nigeria’s informal power-sharing arrangement as a major reason.
The former Anambra State governor said the chances of him contesting the 2031 presidential election are “very slim” because of the country’s zoning principle, which informally rotates the presidency between the North and the South.
Obi made the remarks during an interview with media personality Rufai Oseni, where he responded to questions about his political future beyond the 2027 election.
Asked whether he would consider another presidential bid if unsuccessful in 2027, Obi said his decision would depend on the outcome of the election and how the presidency is zoned ahead of the 2031 poll.
“For me, it depends on what happens. I don’t want to say it because people might think that I’m saying it because of some people,” he said.
Obi said the issue had previously come up during a conversation with a secondary school student, who asked if he would run again after the 2027 election.
“I said because if I don’t run now, by the next time it comes, believing in the zoning formula, it will go to the North,” Obi explained.
“If it goes North in 2031, by the time it comes again to the South, I will be 78 years old, and I don’t think I would be doing this at that age.”
The former governor, however, said another presidential ambition could only be considered if the presidency remained in the South in 2031, although he maintained that such a possibility was unlikely.
“If it’s still in the South in the next election, maybe, but the probability is very slim. I don’t know until after the outcome of the 2027 election,” he added.
