You’re a ‘political freeloader’ – APC lambasts Amaechi for inciting violence

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has condemned former Minister of Transport and Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi, for what it describe as irresponsible and “unpatriotic” comments aimed at inciting unrest in Nigeria.

The statement, issued on Friday by Felix Morka, the APC’s National Publicity Secretary and posted on X (formerly Twitter), by presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga, accused Amaechi of attempting to provoke public anger by urging Nigerian youth to protest against the rising cost of living.

Amaechi, a long-serving political figure, was criticised for his alleged hypocrisy, given his history as a two-term Speaker, Governor, and Minister. The APC labeled him as a “political freeloader” and a “beneficiary of state resources,” suggesting that his current dissatisfaction stems from being out of power rather than genuine concern for the public.

The post read, “Amaechi’s comments are insensitive, god-awful and unpatriotic, coming from one of Nigeria’s longest serving and highest ranking political freeloaders – a two-term Speaker of the Rivers state House of Assembly, a two-term Governor, and a two-term Minister of Transport.

“For almost all of his adult life, Amaechi has been a leechy dependant on state resources, a voracious beneficiary of official patronage, and a leading participant in the generational devastation of our country’s economy. Attempting to hoodwink Nigerians into his web of false empathy and incitement to violence is hypocritical, provocative and dangerous.”

Morka further linked Amaechi with other opposition figures, including Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, claiming that they all belong to a “tribe of naysayers” who criticise but did little to address Nigeria’s issues while in power.

The post continued, “The only real anger that Amaechi and his fellow tribesmen of naysayers of the likes of Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, must feel is that they are not in the saddle of government today. But that was a decision made by Nigeria’s ultimate political authority – the electorate. Nigerians are highly perceptive, discerning, demure, and mindful that economic discomforts associated with the administration’s inevitable reforms are transient and will pale into insignificance in comparison to the enduring transformative dividends which are already beginning to manifest. Nigerians will not be cajoled into taking back through street violence what they handed to the administration through the ballot, as Amaechi and his partisan tribesmen would wish.”

The APC argued that Nigeria’s economic challenges, though difficult, are part of the necessary reforms being implemented by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration. According to Morka, these reforms will lead to long-term benefits, and the discomforts are only temporary. He stressed that Nigerians had made their decision through the ballot box and should not be misled into violent protests by figures like Amaechi, who had failed to improve the country during their time in office.

“It is nauseating to think that these naysayer tribesmen who did absolutely nothing to improve the economy or living conditions for Nigerians while they were in office, now pontificate, endlessly, about what and how things should be done but didn’t and couldn’t do while in power.

“It’s as though they only regain their senses and discover their talents for governance when they are out of power. A tribe of naysayers, is what they are, who never see any good, only gloom, filled with bile and disdain for the determined strides of APC-administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to transform our country’s economy for the benefit of present and future generations of Nigerians.”

The APC’s statement concludes by encouraging patience and national unity as the administration works toward a better future for the country, urging Nigerians to reject any calls to anarchy and continue supporting the current government’s efforts to transform the economy.

The statement said, “We urge Nigerians to dismiss the call to anarchy by Amaechi and his partisan tribesmen and to remain patient and continue to support President Tinubu’s bold effort to transform our country’s economy once and for all.”

The statement comes after Amaechi expressed his disappointment at the way Nigerians are responding to the nation’s current economic challenges, stating that he had expected more visible reactions from citizens, particularly the young people.