ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- Former Minister of Transportation and ex-Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, has expressed confidence that he can defeat former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to clinch the presidential ticket of the African Democratic Congress ahead of the 2027 general election.
Amaechi, who spoke during an interview on Trust TV Monday night, said Atiku may no longer possess the electoral strength required to win a presidential election despite repeatedly emerging victorious in party primaries.
“I listened when the former vice president said he never failed a primary before. I hope this will be the first time he will fail primary,” Amaechi said.
He added that winning party primaries was different from winning a national election.
“The issue is that at all times that you have passed primary, you have not won an election. So it’s about electability,” he stated.
Amaechi argued that his own candidacy offers Nigerians a fresh alternative because he has never previously contested a presidential election.
“I’ve never run. If nothing else, I can argue that I’ve never run any presidential election,” he said.
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Despite positioning himself against Atiku in the ADC race, Amaechi praised both the former vice president and former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, insisting they would govern Nigeria better than President Bola Tinubu.
“If you give this country to Vice President Atiku to govern, I believe he would do well. Just as I think Governor Obi would do well. Honestly, both of them would do better than President Tinubu,” Amaechi said.
The former Rivers governor also accused Tinubu of promoting ethnic considerations in governance, describing the President as “tribalistic.”
He, however, contrasted Tinubu’s leadership style with that of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, whom he described as “a huge nationalist.”
“He’s a Nigerian president. He’s not a Yoruba president,” Amaechi said while referring to Obasanjo.
On the issue of zoning, Amaechi said he supports the arrangement because Nigeria is yet to attain full national unity.
“The answer is yes and no. Yes in the sense that the country, for now, is yet to be found as a united entity,” he said.
He stressed that every region and minority group in the country must feel included in the Nigerian project.
Speaking further on insecurity and grievances in the South-East, Amaechi warned against marginalisation, insisting that every part of the country must feel a sense of belonging.
“If they have to be in Nigeria, then they must be part of Nigeria. They must have a sense of belonging that they are Nigerians,” he stated.
Amaechi added that his vision for governance would prioritise national integration, education and equal opportunities across all regions, including improved educational infrastructure in Northern Nigeria and addressing concerns in the South-East.
His comments come ahead of the ADC presidential primary scheduled for May 25, 2026, with other notable aspirants in the race including Atiku and economist Mohammed Hayatu-Deen.
The party has maintained that it has no preferred aspirant and may still consider a consensus arrangement before the primary election.