In a shocking revelation, Nigeria’s minister of transportation and former governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi, has said he didn’t join politics to solve the country’s problems.
Amaechi, who served two terms as Rivers governor, said unemployment drove him into politics.
The minister made the revelation in an interview with Punch.
The 54-year-old native of Ikwerre in Rivers State said although his father was a politician, his voyage into politics was not born out of the quest to be a leader.
“My father was a politician. He ran for councillorship during his time. However, I didn’t join politics because I wanted to be a leader or because I wanted to solve Nigeria’s problems.
“I joined because of unemployment. I also believe there is a part that grace played in it,” he told the newspaper.
Amaechi’s political career dates back to 1992 when Peter Odili, as deputy governor of Rivers State, appointed him as his special assistant.
He went on to become a member of the Rivers State House of Assembly in 1999, and subsequently served two terms as Speaker of the House.
His bid to succeed Odili as governor in 2007 was said to have strained his relationship with the former governor after he verbally attacked Odili.
After serving two terms as Rivers State Governor under the banner of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Amaechi defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2013.
His strained relationship with former president Goodluck Jonathan of the PDP was believed to have pushed him to join the APC.
He campaigned for the incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari who defeated Jonathan in the 2015 presidential election.
Buhari subsequently appointed him as the minister of transportation, a position he’s occupying for the second term.
