Former Minister of Transportation and ex-Governor of Rivers State, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, on Wednesday launched a blistering attack on former Senator Shehu Sani while speaking at a national electoral reform gathering, warning him against making further comments about him in public.
Amaechi, who arrived the event at noon but needed to leave early for a 4:00 p.m. engagement, said he regretted missing earlier sessions where some participants reportedly criticised him in his absence. He singled out Senator Shehu Sani, stressing that he would no longer tolerate such comments.
“I left a summit two days ago and Senator Shani abused me. I wish I was there; I would have abused him back. I know him very well,” Amaechi declared. “He should not try it again because I will expose him in public. I’m not joking.”
He also tackled another speaker, Robert A.A., over claims that a political meeting held in the United States involved religious discussions. Amaechi dismissed the claims as false, insisting that no such meeting occurred.
“There was no meeting in America. There was only one meeting, at the house of the Consul General of the U.S. embassy. The Americans said they didn’t want violence in the elections. The opposition assured there would be no violence, and the government was told not to rig. Nobody discussed Christian or Muslim religion,” he said.
The former Rivers governor took aim at the Nigerian media, accusing journalists of abandoning their watchdog role and succumbing to ethnic bias and financial inducement. According to him, the courage journalists displayed under military rule has disappeared because the political “pot is now bigger.”
“If anybody says the military was chased out without journalists, that person is a liar. Journalists played a major role,” Amaechi said. “But today, why are you no longer fighting politicians? Because the pot is bigger. Under the military, the pot was small, and only the officers enjoyed it. Now, everybody is eating from the pot.”
He argued that ethnic loyalty had infiltrated journalism to the point where many journalists avoid criticising leaders from their own region. “Nobody wants to write against his brother. Even if your brother is bad, he becomes a wonderful man because he is from your place,” he said.
Amaechi also contended that Nigerians generally support bad leaders when those leaders emerge from their own ethnic or regional bloc. “Nigerians don’t hate bad government. They just want the bad president to be from their area,” he stated.
He challenged the audience to reflect on whether life was better under former President Olusegun Obasanjo compared to the present situation. Many in the audience reportedly agreed that the Obasanjo era offered a better quality of life. “Under Obasanjo, we attacked him for many things, including EFCC. But now, nobody is talking,” he said.
Amaechi lamented the lack of true national cohesion, saying Nigeria has not yet become a country where citizens can thrive regardless of where they come from. He narrated an encounter with a billionaire who said he had received a ₦2 billion contract under Amaechi’s administration without ever meeting him. Amaechi then challenged former Imo State governor Rochas Okorocha, who was present, to confirm whether he ever awarded any contract to a Rivers indigene while in office.
“For Nigeria to become a country, you should be able to live and succeed anywhere — in Lagos, Port Harcourt, Kano — without discrimination,” he noted.
On insecurity, Amaechi delivered one of his strongest points, arguing that rising crime is directly linked to poverty and socio-economic neglect. “When government denies citizens legitimate means of livelihood, they will create illegitimate means. Both are economies,” he said.
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He added: “If you are eating the money while I’m starving, I will kidnap you. That’s the reason for kidnapping.”
Amaechi insisted that the increasing use of bulletproof cars by politicians is a sign that they have contributed to the insecurity Nigerians now face. He urged journalists and citizens to hold leaders accountable and ensure that non-performing governments are voted out.
“We must agree to chase out any bad government through legitimate elections,” he concluded.
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