Amaechi: GEJ wanted so much money for subsidy

Rotimi Amaechi, director-general of the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign, has launched fresh attacks on former president, Goodluck Jonathan.

Amaechi, who had a running battle with Jonathan in the buildup to the general election, relaxed his scorching criticism of the immediate-past government after the conclusion of the election.

But speaking at the International Conference Centre (ICC) in Abuja on Monday, Amaechi accused Jonathan of using fuel subsidy as an avenue to waste the nation’s resources.

He said subsidy, which was kept at N300 billion under former presidents, Olusegun Obasanjo and Umaru Yar’Adua, tripled within six months that Jonathan came into power.

“The fuel subsidy was N300 billion under former President Olusegun Obasanjo and it remained the same under President Umaru Yar’Adua,” he said.

“Within six months under President Goodluck Jonathan, the fuel subsidy rose from N300 billion to N1.9 trillion. Yet, Jonathan wanted more money for fuel subsidy.

“This prompted the trouble between me and the Jonathan administration.”

Amaechi said the victory of the APC at the poll was engineered by God and commended all members of the party for working hard during the campaign.

“Gov. Amaechi did not contribute more than you did. We all worked together; in fact, it will be unfair for us to claim the glory,” he said.

“This is because I believe that the victory of APC was engineered by God. And I saw it coming and told my friends that we would win. People thought I was a political mathematician. The more I prayed, the more God gave me the confidence that we would win.

“One of my prayer points was `God, do not tell me You will protect me after we lose; protect me now by making sure that we win’; and we won.”

Amaechi urged the ruling party to work towards delivering its campaign promises, noting that Nigerians would hold APC accountable in 2019.

“We will not disappoint Nigerians. We believe APC governors are progressives and therefore, they cannot afford not to deliver,” he said.

John Oyegun, national chairman of the APC, said Amaechi had the ability to struggle, fight and win power, describing him as “hyper-active”.

“Amaechi brought passion and energy into APC and he was aware of the risks of failure. The man we are celebrating today deserves honour,” he said.

Nasir el-Rufai, governor of Kaduna state, also showered encomiums on Amaechi, saying he transformed Rivers within the period that he governed the state.

“I know this because I have visited Rivers many times and have seen the work he did,” he said.

“The primary schools in the state are better than some state universities. He also transformed the roads, health sector and created jobs, among other things. All these feats make him a transformative leader.”

El-Rufai said Amaechi constantly strategised for the party, making him an arrowhead in the lead-up to the governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun states.

He added that Amaechi contributed to efforts to increase the collection of the Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) from 50 per cent to 90 per cent nationally, shortly before the general election.

El-Rufai said Amaechi was worthy of being celebrated because he displayed courage in everything he did and cared about humanity.

“He has no regard for ethnic affiliation; he has no regard for religious affiliation,” he said.

“He is a devout Catholic who believes that every human being is entitled to his or her religious beliefs. What matters most to Amaechi are fairness, equity and justice and I am happy to call him my friend.”