Rotimi Amaechi’s Call For Protest: Incitement to Anarchy or Political Hypocrisy?
Princess-Ekwi Ajide
As Nigeria grapples with economic reforms under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, the All Progressives Congress,APC, has urged citizens to be patient and supportive, dismissing the provocations from what it describes as a “tribe of naysayers.”
The APC was reacting to a controversial statement, attributed to a former Minister of Transport and two-term Governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi, where he criticised Nigerian youths for their failure to protest the high cost of living.
His comments have sparked outrage and accusations of hypocrisy, with many calling his rhetoric dangerous and irresponsible coming from a man who has spent much of his political career benefiting from public office,
In response, the National Publicity Secretary of APC, Felix Morka, condemned Amaechi’s remarks, labeling them unpatriotic pointing out that Amaechi, alongside other political figures like Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, are upset not because of the current economic challenges but because they are no longer in positions of power.
He said that if those in power ‘steal money,’ as Amaechi had alleged, how come he can’t afford ‘to buy diesel’ barely two years after holding power for over 24 years?” Morka’s statement asked, calling into question the sincerity of Amaechi’s outcry.
Morka’s statement also criticised what he described as a pattern among political figures who only seem to voice solutions for governance once they are no longer in power and accused Amaechi and others of failing to deliver when they had the opportunity and now using economic challenges to fan the flames of division.
“It’s nauseating to think that these naysayers who did nothing to improve the economy or living conditions while they were in office now pontificate endlessly about what should be done,” the statement also read.
