“It’s dangerous to seize power from South in 2027” — Shehu Sani warns

Former Kaduna Central Senator, Shehu Sani has warned that attempts by northern politicians to take the presidency from the South in 2027 could reignite separatist agitation across the South-West, South-East and South-South.

Sani gave the warning during an interview with journalists in Kaduna on Friday, October 9, 2026, arguing that President Bola Tinubu should be allowed to complete the South’s turn in the presidency before power returns to the North.

The former lawmaker, who is seeking a return to the Senate, maintained that respecting power rotation would help preserve national unity and prevent renewed political tensions. He believes the North can pursue its presidential ambition in 2031 without disrupting the current arrangement.

Why Shehu Sani wants Tinubu to complete his tenure

Sani argued that the North had already held the presidency for eight years under former President Muhammadu Buhari between 2015 and 2023, making it reasonable for a southern candidate to occupy the position for the next turn.

Explaining the potential consequences of abandoning the arrangement, he said, “The danger of disrupting this rotational idea is the fact that whatever you are doing to Tinubu for ethnic reasons, Tinubu must go.”

He also linked the decline in separatist agitation in parts of the South to the prospect of having a president from the region.

Speaking about the South-East, Sani said, “Today, if you look at it, the agitation for Biafra has gone to the lowest point because they are hopeful that one of their own is contesting the presidency of this country.”

He warned that disrupting the arrangement could weaken that sense of political inclusion and create fresh tensions.

Sani criticises political reactions to insecurity

The former senator also accused some northern politicians of applying different standards when discussing insecurity under Buhari and Tinubu.

He recalled school abductions in Dapchi, Kankara, Jangebe and Yauri, as well as attacks on educational institutions in Kaduna State, arguing that political leaders should be held accountable regardless of their regional affiliations.

Sani said, “We cannot address security challenges in the country when we shielded our own who failed to address the problem, and now shift blame and use it for political reasons to achieve certain political ends.”

He further stressed the need for effective representation in the National Assembly to tackle insecurity, poverty, inadequate healthcare and educational challenges in northern Nigeria.