Jonathan fought me over N1.9tn subsidy funds – Amaechi

Former Governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi,
has said his refusal to support ex-President Goodluck
Jonathan’s bid to secure the support of governors for
an upward review of subsidy payments was one of
the reasons why they fell apart.
Amaechi also revealed that the former President
asked him not to seek re-election as the Chairman of
the Nigeria Governors’ Forum because of his
principled stand against the unjustified depletion of a
common patrimony.
The former governor said this in Abuja, late on
Sunday, at a dinner organised in his honour by his
friends in Abuja.
The Committee of Friends was chaired by ex-Bayelsa
State governor, Timipre Sylva. Others in the group
included Senator Magnus Abe, Dakuku Peterside and
the governors of Plateau and Bauchi states, among
others.
According to Amaechi, the former President also
presided over the taking away of oil wells belonging
to the people of Rivers State, a situation which
adversely affected the state’s revenue base.
He said, “When the trouble between me and the
former President started, as the Chairman of the
Nigeria Governors’ Forum, the oil subsidy was
N300bn under President Obasanjo. It remained the
same under Yar’Adua. Six months of President
Goodluck Jonathan, the oil subsidy rose to N1.9trn. Is
it that the country now doubled its population or
bought more machines or started manufacturing?
“As the Chairman of Nigeria Governors’ Forum, I was
in a position to get my own share of the N1.9trn, but
I chose the part of honesty and truth; you cannot
catch me being dishonest.”
The former governor also said, “There was a time I
walked into a meeting with the former President
(Goodluck Jonathan) and in the meeting, the
argument was that they wanted more money for oil
subsidy. As the Chairman of Nigeria Governors’
Forum, I stood my ground and told the then
President I was not going to support that.
“He asked me why and I explained that we are
already in court with you on the issue of fuel subsidy.
The ex-President abused the hell out of my life. I
have huge respect for the President, but the only
thing that made me disagree with him was on the
issue of the management of the country’s treasury.”
Amaechi challenged those who claimed that he
betrayed the South-South with his support for the All
Progressives Congress and President Muhammadu
Buhari to tell the world how former President
Jonathan’s presidency benefited the region in
particular and Nigeria in general.
He pointed out that by his own admission, the
former President, while seeking re-election,
appealed to the people of the zone to give him a
second chance because he did nothing for them in his
first term.
Amaechi also said the looting of the nation’s treasury
was done by people from all the geo-political zones,
but noted that the only thing was that it was presided
over by a President from the South-South.
He said the victory of the APC during the last general
elections was largely due to the fact that the party
had a good product in the person of Muhammadu
Buhari to sell.
Amaechi said his successor, Nyesom Wike and his
supporters were trying very hard to dent his image
because they know that if he gets a federal
appointment, it would change the politics of the
state.
In his remarks, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo
described Amaechi as a man of tremendous courage
who stood up, not just against former President
Jonathan, but the entire establishment.
He said, “Everyone agreed that the Peoples
Democratic Party was powerful and it would be
difficult to remove it from office, but one man stood
up against the whole might of the Federal
Government, and today, we are celebrating the man
and the victory of our party because of what he did.
“Amaechi is also a man of big ideas and very
insightful. He understands how to live long in the
hearts of men. His education policies in Rivers State
and all of those children he gave real hope and
opportunities will always be there. He will be
remembered long after he left this earth.”
Earlier, the Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir
el-Rufai, said the former Rivers State Governor was
one Nigerian who deserves all the accolades because
of his detribalised nature.
He explained that his decision to lead four of his
other colleagues to dump the PDP altered the
equation, because if only the four who were
northerners left, it would have been a case of
northerners leaving the PDP “to join a northern
party.”