The United States Consul General in Nigeria, Will Stevens said that Nigeria has enjoyed at least 25 years of presidential succession.
The Consul General stated this on Wednesday while addressing students during the launch of the ‘Recycling Waste to Wealth Challenge’ competition for secondary school students at Abeokuta Window on America, located at the youth development centre of the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, Abeokuta, Ogun State.
He noted that former president Olusegun Obasanjo had set the pace for Nigeria, according to the Independent.
He said, “Obasanjo served two terms and left power, he set the precedent in Nigeria for you to serve and then you step aside for your successor. Nigeria has enjoyed 25 years of presidential succession.
“President Buhari just did the same thing, he served his two terms and then he stepped aside, that is a big deal in democracy, peaceful transitions of power, that is a huge thing to be proud of, it does not happen very often.
“There are presidents of neighbouring countries that have been there for a very, very long time, 20, 30, 40 years, this leads to democratic instability, it leads to coups.
He reiterated that Nigeria is the fourth largest democracy in the world and he applauded the idea of leaders serving their term and stepping down.
“Nigeria is the fourth largest democracy in the world, you just had a successful presidential transition, successful elections, this is something you should not take for granted. The idea that people can come into power, they can serve and then leave is really cool,” he added.