Governor ‘Seyi Makinde of Oyo State has made a case for a single-term tenure for governors, presidents and other elected political office holders. He stated that this would allow them enough time to do everything they have in mind within a single term instead of thinking about the second term.
The governor, who won a second term in March, said this on Wednesday at a dinner in honour of the national executive of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), to flag off their retreat in Ibadan.
While reacting to PFN’s National President, Bishop Wale Oke’s claim that there is no second term in the association’s leadership, the Governor also called on Nigerians to pray for those in positions of authority, noting that politics is over and that it is time for governance.
“Here in Nigeria, every four years, just like most democracies around the world, we come together as a nation to choose our leaders.
“I also listened to our Baba, the National President of PFN. He said the leadership of PFN has just finished the first half of its tenure. I just learnt that there is no second term in PFN.
“Maybe, we need to learn one or two things from that arrangement for our nation.
“I am a supporter of a single-term structure. As a matter of fact, I didn’t want a second term and I told the fathers of faith that, look, four years may not be long enough to do everything that you want to do, but it is long enough to make your own impact and go your own way.
“But maybe, if we have the opportunity to discuss this, I think a five or six-year single term will really be enough for most of us to do whatever it is that we are supposed to do,” the governor added.
He maintained that governance is about the interests and wellness of the country, noting that political parties would come and go, but the country would remain.
Hence, Makinde said, the need for Nigerians to pray and work with those in positions of authority.
The governor, as contained in a release by his Chief Press Secretary, Sulaimon Olanrewaju, urged Nigerians to put politics behind them and face the task of governance.
“Political parties will come and go, but our country will remain. We must pray for those in authority. Politics is over. It is time for governance.
“These leaders God has asked us to pray for are products of who the political parties present to us. And these leaders have been chosen, we are obligated to pray for them and work with them.
“Well, if we don’t like those in authority, what should we do? We have another opportunity in another four years to vote again,” Makinde said.
The governor described the theme of the retreat, “Going from Strength to Strength,” as indicative of where Nigeria should be as a nation.
He urged all Nigerians to join hands to rebuild the nation while calling on Christians to pray for the restoration of Nigeria’s glory so that it could go from strength to strength.
He said: “I listened to the National President of PFN, Bishop Wale Oke, on the theme chosen for this serious event, ‘Going from Strength to Strength.’
“Well, I think this is really apt because that is where we are supposed to be as a nation.
“We must think about rebuilding our nation and the role the body of Christ has to play in that process. The Bible asks Christians to pray for their leaders.
“As Christians, we should carry out the work that God has assigned to us effectively.”
Governor Makinde equally used the occasion to call on Christians to make conscious efforts to participate in politics.
He said, by so doing, the ones considered unfit by the majority would not continue to make decisions for the majority of the people.
Earlier in his address, the PFN National President, Bishop Wale Oke, said the retreat came at a very critical time in the nation’s history.
He mentioned the recent general election that rocked the nation and nearly pitted Nigerians against each other.
