)
Former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi has opened up about the threats he faced during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, as well as his views on the current government’s policies.
Speaking at the 9th Akinjide Adeosun Foundation Leadership Discourse in Lagos, Amaechi explained why he mobilised against Jonathan’s 2015 re-election bid. He said it had nothing to do with personal animosity but his dissatisfaction with Jonathan’s leadership style.
“You may say Jonathan was better than Buhari, but by the time he was leaving office, the dollar was already rising to between N150 and N200," he said. "I’ll explain more in my book.”
Amaechi also shared chilling details of how his life was endangered under Jonathan’s presidency. According to him, soldiers once blocked him from entering Ekiti State despite his immunity as a governor. He recalled another incident in Kano, where he was prevented from flying out after attending the emir's installation.
)
)
)
ALSO READ: Money sharing is the real reason behind Fubara, Wike’s fight - Amaechi
“A good soldier warned me: 'Leave before nightfall. I can’t account for your life.' Imagine that — as a sitting governor," he said. “Another time in Kano, security agents blocked the runway with a machine gun. We had to switch off our phones and sneak out to Zaria by road. God drove us from Kaduna to Abuja because I was too tired to stay awake.”
)
Criticises Tinubu’s subsidy removal
Amaechi also took a swipe at President Bola Tinubu’s approach to the removal of fuel subsidy, saying the policy, though necessary, was poorly timed.
“You cannot remove subsidy when people are already hungry. You should have created jobs first. If you built 200,000 to 300,000 houses across the states, you would have empowered carpenters, bricklayers, and cement suppliers. Then, people would have had money to absorb the shock.”
Amaechi expressed disappointment at religious institutions, accusing some churches of failing to speak out against the current economic hardship.
“If a priest preaches support for this suffering, I walk out of that church. In the Catholic Church, we have liberation theologians who still speak truth to power,” he said, praising outspoken bishops like that of Nsukka.
ALSO READ: 'I wore one shirt for 4 years' – ex-Rivers Gov Amaechi