Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has said that the former minister of transportation and African Democratic Congress (ADC) vice-presidential candidate, Chibuike Amaechi’s role in the defeat of former president Goodluck Jonathan during the 2015 election would make it difficult for him to secure widespread support across the south-south.
Speaking during his monthly media chat in Abuja on Tuesday, August 4, Wike also declared that president Bola Tinubu remains the only candidate capable of winning Rivers state in the 2027 general election.
He described Amaechi as a political liability who lacks the electoral strength to influence elections in Rivers state and the south-south region.
“If anybody is counting Rivers, go now and cancel it. The only person that can count Rivers is Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. I am not talking because I want to talk; I am talking as a political realist, because I know my people,” he said.
Questioning Amaechi’s emergence as the ADC’s vice-presidential candidate, Wike suggested that financial considerations, rather than electoral influence, may have informed the decision.
“I am sure the only factor that has been used to choose Rotimi Amaechi may be financial because the former governor lacks the capacity to deliver votes,” he said.
Wike argued that Amaechi’s electoral record did not support claims of political relevance, noting that he failed to deliver significant votes in Rivers State despite occupying strategic political positions.
“He has never won a presidential election after 2011 when I was the director of campaign. Never! He was the director-general of Buhari in 2015 when he was governor; why did he not get 25%?
“He was the DG in 2019 when he was a super minister; why did he not get 25%? He supported Atiku in 2023; how come he didn’t get 15%?” he queried.
The FCT minister also accused Amaechi of political inconsistency, recalling that the former governor had criticised the ADC primary process before eventually participating in it.
“This was the same man, just one month ago, who said the ADC primary was manual, irregular, and corrupt.
“How can we talk about removing a government that we are saying there is no election, and then we are in another election? The same man now is benefiting from the corruption, from irregularities of the same system,” Wike said.
“A south-south person wanted to go for a second term. You were proud you kicked him out. Now, will south-south be happy for you to be vice president? You think that people have forgotten?”
Highlighting the current administration’s projects in Rivers state, Wike cited the Bonny Road project as evidence that the state has received unprecedented federal attention.
“Never in the history of Rivers state, from 1999, of those who claimed to be very close to the president, have we had the type of attention that Rivers State has now,” he said.
The minister also disclosed that politicians from the PDP, APC, Labour Party, Action Alliance (AA), and other political groups had formed a broad coalition to support Tinubu’s re-election while jointly backing candidates for legislative positions.
“Today, we have PDP, APC, Labour Party, AA all together. Whoever emerges should not be seen as APC or PDP; the person should be seen as the coalition’s candidate,” he said, adding that the alliance was spreading like wildfire across Rivers state.
Wike maintained that the coalition was focused on advancing the state’s development rather than promoting partisan interests.
“It is not about personal ambition; it is about the interest of the state,” he said.
Comments