The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has slammed the former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, following the latter’s defection to the African Democratic Congress (ADC).

On Wednesday, Amaechi officially joined the ADC, a coalition-backed political party spearheaded by former Vice President Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, along with other opposition politicians, in an effort to unseat President Bola Tinubu in 2027. 

Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Thursday, Amaechi declared his interest in contesting for president on the platform of the ADC in the forthcoming election. 

Amaechi stated that the Tinubu administration has mismanaged the economy, adding that the previous government of Muhammadu Buhari, in which she served as a minister, was far more effective than the current one.

But his political rival, Wike, has dismissed Amaechi’s presidential aspiration, saying the ex-minister will never return to power.

“Because you have left office, you are angry. You said Nigerians are angry. You want to come back to power; you won’t come back,” Wike stated.

The FCT minister also challenged Amaechi and his friends in the ADC coalition to “show their scorecards.”

The FCT minister lambasted Amaechi on Friday, when Vice President Kashim Shettima commissioned the rehabilitated Aguma Palace Road and the New Market Road in the Gwagwalada Area Council of the nation’s capital.

Amaechi and Wike have both served as former governors of Rivers State. The ex-minister of transportation was governor from May 2007 to May 2015, and he handed over to Wike, who equally governed the state for eight years, from 2015 to 2023.

Vanguard News