Chief Robert Audu, a retired Permanent Secretary, has called for the adoption of a 6-year single tenure, beginning with President Muhammadu Buhari.
When asked what his reason was, he replied as in this statement.
My reason is that we waste a lot of money on elections every four years. The expenditure on election is too much. For instance, we hear the president is asking for about N400 billion to conduct the 2019 elections. This is apart from all the support INEC receives from international organisations. This is a waste of resources. If we have six years of single term, in eight years, we would have saved the cost of conducting one election. The balance will be used for developmental projects,” he said.
“I’m even advocating that the 6-year single term should start with Buhari. He should be given a two-year extension, and subsequently, we go for a 6-year single term.”
“Buhari may be the first to benefit from it, but it is not meant for him. We had proposed this even in the 2005 conference, in which Obasanjo would have benefitted, but it failed because Obasanjo would have had an additional two years over the eight years of two four-year terms recognized by the constitution,” he added.
“But if this is accepted, Buhari is actually losing two years, not gaining two years because he expects to win the 2019 election that will give him another 4-year mandate. Therefore, if we have 6-year single term, he would actually lose two years,” he concluded.
