Former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, has alleged that former President Muhammadu Buhari promised to announce him as his preferred successor in the 2022 All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential primary, urging him not to campaign ahead of the contest.
Amaechi said he relied on Buhari’s assurance, which he claimed was also communicated in writing, and consequently failed to lobby delegates or negotiate political alliances that could have strengthened his chances of winning the ticket.
He made the disclosure during an interview on Mainland 98.3FM’s The Situation Room programme in Lagos on Friday, while reflecting on how President Bola Tinubu defeated him in the APC presidential primary.
According to Amaechi, he considered Buhari’s assurance credible because the former president was his boss and believed his endorsement would give him an advantage over other aspirants.
He said, “The first mistake that I made at that primary was that I listened to President Buhari. He said to me, ‘Don’t campaign. Don’t do anything. I will announce you as my candidate.’
“He told me that. He put it in writing. When I write my book, I’ll put it out.”
The ADC chieftain said his decision not to negotiate political positions with governors and other influential party members also weakened his ambition, giving Tinubu an opportunity to build alliances ahead of the primary.
Amaechi argued that he could have secured the backing of governors by promising political appointments, including the positions of vice-president and Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF).
“Now, I didn’t do deals. So I would have promised you vice-president, promised you SGF, and then would have gone for this primary, I would have possibly won. I would have had governors on my side.
“Because I didn’t do deals, Tinubu had the chance to do deals,” he said.
He also accused Tinubu of exploiting religious sentiments to secure support from delegates, particularly in northern Nigeria.
Amaechi, however, said he would not use religion as a political tool to win elections, describing his position as a reflection of his nationalist convictions.
He alleged that a delegation of Southern Yoruba Muslims had approached governors in the North-West, appealing to them to support Tinubu on religious grounds.
He also referenced former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, whom he said had initially supported his presidential ambition before eventually backing Tinubu.
“El-Rufai was my supporter. El-Rufai, in a viral video, said this is done for the faith,” Amaechi said.
He warned that appealing to religious identity for political support could deepen divisions in the country, insisting that he would not adopt such an approach even if it offered him an electoral advantage.
“I wouldn’t want to run that kind of federation. Catholics are 35 million in Nigeria. I wouldn’t want to go to the Catholic Church and say, please announce me. Tell them that all Catholics must go out and vote Amaechi.
“It will cause confusion. It will cause problems in the country. That makes me a nationalist,” he said.
Buhari’s govt sidelined Tinubu despite 2015 support — Akande
Amaechi also questioned the perception of Tinubu as an exceptionally strategic politician, asking why he had not become president earlier if his political success was based on extraordinary political manoeuvring.
Tinubu defeated Amaechi and other aspirants at the APC presidential primary held at Eagle Square, Abuja, in June 2022, polling 1,271 votes against Amaechi’s 316.
The victory secured Tinubu’s emergence as the APC presidential candidate for the 2023 election, which he went on to win.
Amaechi, who served as Minister of Transportation under Buhari, was also a close political ally of the former president and directed his successful 2015 presidential campaign.
He is now the running mate to former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar on the African Democratic Congress (ADC) ticket for the 2027 presidential election.
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