Former Rivers State Governor and former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, has asserted that he was the central figure behind the emergence of late President Muhammadu Buhari in the 2015 presidential election, dismissing claims by President Bola Tinubu that he solely made Buhari president.
Amaechi made the remarks during an interview on Arise News’ Prime Time on Friday while responding to comments Tinubu made during his campaign ahead of the 2023 presidential election.
At the time, Tinubu had repeatedly stated that Buhari’s rise to power would not have been possible without his political influence, adding that it was therefore his own turn to become president.
Explaining why he had remained silent on the issue for years, Amaechi said his position as a serving minister in Buhari’s administration prevented him from openly disputing Tinubu’s claims.
“When we decided to form the APC, while I was a minister, (Tinubu) was claiming he made Buhari president and I couldn’t respond because I was a minister under President Buhari. That would have been suicidal because Buhari could fire you,” Amaechi said.
He continued, “So I couldn’t have said, ‘You are wrong.’ He didn’t make President Buhari president. Not only was I the DG of the campaign, but everybody will bear witness that I did all the battle.
“I led the Governors’ Forum, criss-crossed the country fighting here and there trying to get Nigerians to know that this is the time for change.”
Amaechi served as Director-General of Buhari’s presidential campaigns in both 2015 and 2019. He also played a major role in the political realignments between 2013 and 2014, particularly the defection of several PDP governors that contributed to the formation of the All Progressives Congress (APC), which eventually defeated then-President Goodluck Jonathan in the 2015 election.
Despite Amaechi’s claims, Tinubu was widely regarded as a key architect of the APC coalition, having spearheaded the merger of major opposition blocs, including his Action Congress of Nigeria, into the political alliance that unseated the PDP government.
Amaechi’s latest comments come as he intensifies his political activities ahead of the 2027 presidential election under the African Democratic Congress (ADC). In recent months, he has also emerged as one of the prominent critics of the Tinubu administration, particularly over worsening economic conditions in the country.
