Former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, has said that Nigerian leaders at corridors of power, with the exception of Olusegun Obasanjo, are ethnic champions, who are after the interest of their ethnic groups.
Amaechi, was the guest speaker at the ‘2023 TheNiche Annual Lecture’, themed: Why We Stride and Slip: Leadership, Nationalism and Nigerian Condition, yesterday, in Lagos.
The lecture, which is in its fourth edition, was organised by TheNiche Foundation for Development Journalism to engage Nigerians and proffer solutions to some of the countrys most difficult questions.
Amaechi, who was a one-time former governor of Rivers State, questioned the extent to which Nigerian leadership had been imbued with the necessary sense of national unity. He said Nigerias nationalism and nation-building were younger than the nation as an independent entity, and that there had been more rulers than nationalistic leaders.
While lauding Nigerian nationalists who fought for the independence, Amaechi said genuine nationalistic leadership transcends ethnicity.
According to him, public service equips people with both practical experiences and some inside knowledge on how Nigeria works, as well as why it did not work and how it should work. The only person near that point of nationalism with all respect is ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo. The rest are ethnic leaders”, he stated.
The former minister said many Nigerian leaders are at the corridors of power for the interest of their ethnic groups, noting that the identity of Nigeria is still being tormented by ethnicity.
Amaechi also accused the former Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Hadiza Bala Usman, of telling lies against him in her book.
Speaking for the first time after his failed presidential bid, Amaechi denied Usmans claim in the book that he orchestrated her removal as the NPA MD. He contended that Usmans book, titled: Stepping on Toes: My Odyssey at the Nigerian Ports Authority, contained lies against him.
Amaechi also bemoaned the docile nature of Nigerians and their inability to demand good governance.
Also speaking, Dr. Uma Eleazu, Chairman of the lecture, said that in spite of all the problems the country is facing, the future generation still has hope.
Earlier in his remark, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of TheNiche, Ikechukwu Amaechi, said that the lecture was organised to have various opinions that would shed light on why Nigerias enormous potential are not realised.
The event, which saw the convergence of brilliant brains made of public servants also had a panel of discussion with Funke Treasure, Yakubu Mohammed, Valentine Ozigbo, Chidi Amuta and Prof Anthony Kila serving as the discussants for the panel.
