Defiant Amaechi speaks after secret tape release, attacks PDP

Rotimi Amaechi

The Director-General of President Muhammadu Buhari’s reelection campaign organisation, Rotimi Amaechi, has called on Nigerians not to give one vote to the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2019 elections.

Mr Amaechi is in the eye of the storm after an audio recording was released Sunday by the opposition PDP in which he was saying Nigerians were hungry and poverty has been growing under Mr Buhari.

But speaking during the inauguration of the presidential campaign council of Mr Buhari Monday, Mr Amaechi assured Nigerians that the president’s next four years will be different from the 16 years of the PDP.

“I was in the PDP, the slogan was “Share the money”. But here we are not sharing money. And because we are not sharing money they are saying vote buying. Because they ran election with government money, eating, buying cars with government money and nobody cared.

“I appeal to Nigerians; don’t give one vote to the PDP, they are hungry, they can’t stand poverty, they can’t stand not touching government money. Where money is given for prayers in Nigeria, I can pray in my church, nobody is giving me money to go and pray,” he said.

Mr Amaechi also said the PDP will not have peace until its members return all the funds stolen while they were in office for 16 years.

PDP governed Nigeria from 1999 to 2015 when they lost to the APC.

”We are no longer stealing money. PDP stole the money meant to feed Nigerians and until they return it, they will not have peace.

“PDP has nothing to say to Nigerians. Our campaign is going to be issues based. We are determined to save Nigerians.

“The President said he will fight corruption; that he is doing. We met a tattered economy that if we did nothing, Nigeria would be at a mess. But today the economy has been growing.

“In fixing the economy we promised infrastructural development. When I took over as Minister of Transportation, GE approached me and said we have approached different governments for 11 years to allow us to take over the rail with our own money but nobody agreed, this government agreed, ” he said.

Mr Amaechi told the gathering that before March this year, his ministry will sign a formal agreement of concession to a consortium that will take over Nigeria’s entire narrow gauge rail line and run it.

On why Nigerians should re-elect Mr Buhari, Mr Amaechi said the change promised by the APC cannot be completed in four years.

”Anybody that says we can do so in four years must be a magician. What we are pleading with Nigerians for is another four years to consolidate on what we have started,” he said.