Rotimi Amaechi, a presidential aspirant under the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has urged the party members in Lagos State, the Southwest part of the country, to be impartial when choosing who to vote for during the party’s presidential primary.
Gatekeepers News reports that Amaechi, a Minister of Transportation, had on April 9 declared his intention to join the 2023 presidential race.
On Thursday, during a meeting with the APC delegates in Lagos state, Amaechi highlighted his experience as a minister and former governor of Rivers, saying he has the needed experience to lead Nigeria.
“I have come to talk to your conscience because this is about Nigeria; it’s not about my father, my brother, but about a nation,” he said.
“I served as a governor in a state where people were being killed, kidnapped; robbery was on the increase and people couldn’t go out in Port Harcourt. Parties weren’t going on; the health sector was a problem. In six months, I opened up the city and chased away the criminals, got people back on their feet and got people to go back to work, parties and do whatever they wanted to do.
“So, I am the only aspirant of the party that does not only come with experience but has served in a state where what is facing us now has faced us in that state.
“The first issue is economic prosperity. When I was governor of Rivers state, I said ‘if you don’t provide the people with a legal means of livelihood, they will provide themselves an illegal means of livelihood’. So, I’m experienced in that regard — in finding solutions to insecurity.
“At the national level, I’ve served seven years as minister for transport. If you were in Lagos when we were constructing the Lagos-Ibadan rail, you’ll know that I’m not a big-man minister. I wasn’t in the office. I was coming here once every month and I would sleep there. Ask those who worked with me. I would trek 17km screaming at contractors, giving them timelines. And we delivered this Lagos-Ibadan rail at the right time.
“If you honestly want to look at someone who is detribalised and you keep away sectional sentiments. Let your conscience persuade you.”
Asked by a Lagos APC member if he would withdraw his ambition if asked to do so by the party, Amaechi said he will align with whatever the party decides.
“The party is supreme. Whatever the party decides, I will do it. But I have a question for all of you: ‘will you vote according to your conscience?’ What separates me from all of you is that I have courage,” he said.
“When we were supporting the president, majority of the south-south people were on one side, but I took the interest of the country. I was scared of a civil war; I was scared of a crisis, and I wanted to address all that and I separated myself from my people to just move forward to get peace.
“I hope that all of us will take up that same courage and vote according to our conscience.”
