Nigerians differ on automatic 2nd term in office for politicians

It is a common belief that public officers have the right to seek an automatic second term in office. However, Nigerians on social media have different notion of it, many are of the view that government should be a continuum.

#TribuneChat discussion forum on Facebook engaged Nigerians on their thoughts if an automatic second term in office is a must. The interesting forum aired opinion of Nigerian on social media.

While Uwana Omojuwa opined that it is not a must. Stating that “after all, there’s no law that says it’s a must for one to seek reelection, most of these people looking for second term were either not doing well in their first term, wanting to make amends or are looking to loot a lot of public funds and see second term as an opportunity to loot more money.”

Another commentator, Olawoyin Edris Busayo, considers it necessary for a good leader to seek for second term in office so as to finish their uncompleted projects while agreeing also that it is not a must.

Some, with persuasion from the viewpoint of effective governance, held the notion that only such government is deserving of an automatic second term.

According to Agbakwa Donatus: “When elected political office holders do the wishes of the electorates by fulfilling campaign promises, they automatically deserve second term in office, but where they fail in the art of governance, they should be shamefully voted out.”

He continued, stating emphatically that “when the government of the day fails to address issues like workers salary, insecurity, unemployment, religious intolerance etc, such government, be it Councilor, supervisor, chairman, commissioners etc, they are not worthy to seek reelection.”

Johnson Joe, also opined that elected politicians should put the interest of the electorates and not their selfish ambitions at heart, stating vividly that it is a call to service.

“I wish we’ll have someone like Mandela, a selfless servant for the masses. Though it is not wrong to seek reelection for even in the western world such is in practice, but let there be something tangible to impact peoples’ lives, for politics is not a do or die affair. After all, second term is not mandatory.”

This point is further buttressed by Timothy Faboade’s reaction that “Government should actually be continuum, another leader should continue from where one stops.”

Reaction from Adejumo Kabir Adeniyi revealed that “logically, nobody will finish BA in English in OAU and still insist on taking the same degree in the same varsity when it is not that he/she has any outstanding courses delaying him/her. The issue of second term boils down to the selfishness of our leaders who have seen governance as a recycled process.

“Reactions on both ends, however, showed that second term in Public Office is a scam made necessary by our sick constitution which should be quickly looked into by authorities.”