Chuks Okocha in Abuja
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) vice-presidential candidate, Mr Rotimi Amaechi, has blamed his defeat in the 2022 All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential primary on his decision to follow the advice of the late President Muhammadu Buhari not to campaign ahead of the contest.
Amaechi said Buhari had assured him in writing that he would announce him as his preferred candidate, prompting him to refrain from lobbying delegates and negotiating political alliances ahead of the primary.
He disclosed this during an interview on Mainland 98.3FM’s The Situation Room programme in Lagos on Friday, while reflecting on how President Bola Tinubu defeated him to clinch the APC presidential ticket in 2022.
According to Amaechi, he considered Buhari’s position credible because the former president was his boss and believed his endorsement would give him an advantage over other aspirants.
He said, “The first mistake that I made at that primary was that I listened to President Buhari. He said to me, ‘don’t campaign, don’t do anything, I will announce you as my candidate.’
“He told me that. He put it in writing. When I write my book, I’ll put it out.”
The former Minister of Transportation said his decision not to negotiate political positions with governors and other influential party members also worked against his ambition, and gave Tinubu an opportunity to build alliances ahead of the primary.
Amaechi explained that he could have secured the support of governors by promising them political appointments, including the positions of vice-president and Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
“Now, I didn’t do deals. So, I would have promised you vice-president, promised you SGF, and then would have gone for this primary, I would have possibly won. I would have had governors on my side.
“Because I didn’t do deals, Tinubu had the chance to do deals,” he said.
Amaechi, who was also a presidential aspirant in the 2022 APC primary, further accused Tinubu of exploiting religious sentiments to secure support from delegates, particularly in the North.
He, however, said he would not deploy religion as a political tool to win elections, describing his position as a reflection of his nationalist convictions.
The ADC chieftain alleged that a delegation of Southern Yoruba Muslims had approached governors in the North-West and appealed to them to support Tinubu on religious grounds.
He also cited the position of former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, whom he said had supported his presidential ambition before eventually backing Tinubu.
“El-Rufai was my supporter. El-Rufai, in a viral video, said this is done for the faith,” Amaechi said.
He argued that appealing to religious identity for political support could deepen divisions in the country, adding that he would not encourage such an approach even if it offered him an electoral advantage.
“I wouldn’t want to run that kind of federation. There are 35 million Catholics in Nigeria. I wouldn’t want to go to the Catholic Church and say, ‘please announce me. Tell them that all Catholics must go out and vote Amaechi.’
“It will cause confusion. It will cause problems in the country. That makes me a nationalist,” he said.
Amaechi questioned the perception of Tinubu as an exceptionally strategic politician, asking why he had not become president earlier if his political success was based on an extraordinary ability to manoeuvre.
Tinubu defeated Amaechi and other aspirants at the APC presidential primary held at Eagle Square, Abuja, in June 2022, polling 1,271 votes against Amaechi’s 316.
Kemi Badenoch Tackles Trump, Says US President Deserves US Midterm Defeat
Sunday Ehigiator
British Conservative Party leader, Kemi Badenoch, has said the United States President Donald Trump deserved his defeat in the country’s midterm elections, criticising his handling of the Iran war, trade policies and treatment of allies.
The Independent reported yesterday that Badenoch described Trump’s electoral setback as “entirely self-inflicted” and condemned what she called his “dirty” style of politics.
The Democrats won control of both chambers of Congress in Tuesday’s midterm elections, flipping at least seven Senate seats and more than two dozen House districts in a major setback for Trump’s Republican Party.
Asked whether Trump deserved the defeat, Badenoch, in an interview with The Independent’s Editor-in-Chief, Geordie Greig, replied, “Yeah. He has not been acting in the way that I would consider conservative.”
She criticised Trump’s tariffs, threats towards Canada and Greenland, and disputes with US allies, saying his actions contradicted conservative principles of free markets and better trade.
“Where is the push for free markets and better trade… rather than protectionism, America first, the squabbling with allies? That’s not what conservatives do,” she said.
Badenoch also criticised Trump’s personal attacks on journalists and political figures, saying his conduct fell below the standards expected of a statesman.
“Trump is very charming in person, but you see the way that he talks about journalists, about individuals. It doesn’t meet the standards a statesman should meet – always wanting to get dirty in terms of insults and so on,” she said.
She said she was particularly unhappy with Trump’s remarks about British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and described his treatment of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House as “awful”.
On the Iran war, Badenoch said she understood Trump’s initial decision to launch the military action, which she supported because of concerns about Iran acquiring nuclear weapons, but questioned the absence of a clear strategy.
“We don’t want them getting nuclear weapons. But where’s the plan?” she asked.
She also said she would have been content if Trump had lost the 2024 presidential election to his Democratic opponent, Kamala Harris.
Asked which of the two candidates she preferred, Badenoch said, “I would say I like them both equally. Make of that what you will.”
The Conservative leader also argued that Trump had squandered the broad coalition of voters that helped him win the presidency, including Latino voters and more Black voters than any previous Republican candidate.
“What’s the first thing he does? Tariffs, and then talking about Greenland and Canada. A lot of people were wondering, ‘What are you doing?’” she said.
Badenoch’s comments came amid wider criticism of Trump’s handling of the economy and foreign policy following the Republicans’ losses in the midterms.
Badenoch is the leader of the UK Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition. She became Conservative leader in November 2024 after defeating Robert Jenrick in the party’s leadership contest. She previously served as the UK’s Business and Trade Secretary and Minister for Women and Equalities under former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
Badenoch, whose birth name is Olukemi Olufunto Adegoke, was born in Wimbledon, London, in 1980 to Nigerian parents.