The former Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, has refuted widespread claims that he was offered the vice-presidential ticket of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) following his defeat in the party’s presidential primary election.
Mr Amaechi finished second in the primary contest, which was won in a landslide victory by former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, who secured 1,846,370 votes and carried the Federal Capital Territory alongside a majority of the states. Mr Amaechi garnered 504,117 votes and won two states, while Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, the former managing director of the defunct FSB International Bank, finished in third place with 177,120 votes and a single state.
Following the announcement, both Mr Amaechi and Mr Hayatu-Deen boycotted the party’s official declaration of results. Reacting to the development on Tuesday, the former Rivers State governor described the figures as “concocted”, maintaining that the outcome failed to reflect the transparency and values the ADC had initially pledged to uphold. Mr Hayatu-Deen also issued a separate statement expressing his deep displeasure with the conduct of the primaries.
Speaking during an interview with the broadcaster and media personality Chude Jideonwo, Mr Amaechi addressed the speculation surrounding his joint statement with Mr Hayatu-Deen, as well as rumours regarding a potential joint ticket with Alhaji Atiku.
“Before the statement was made, there were consultations,” Mr Amaechi explained. “We agreed that we should issue the statement. In fact, the final conclusion was between me and Hayatu-Deen.”
The former minister further clarified the details of a recent meeting with the ADC National Chairman, David Mark, dismissing reports that he had stormed out of the venue after angrily rejecting an offer to serve as the vice-presidential candidate. Rumours had circulated both before and after the primary election suggesting that party stakeholders were urging him to settle for the role of Alhaji Atiku’s running mate.
“I went to see the National Chairman of the ADC,” Mr Amaechi stated. “After our discussion, he walked me to the exit door, I shook his hands, and I left. We discussed something entirely different from what was reported.
“But people claimed I stormed out after he told me to run for VP. I am not joking; nobody has ever told me to be vice-president because they know my worth and what my reaction would be.”
In a direct bid aimed at reconciliation ahead of the general elections, Alhaji Atiku, accompanied by several key leaders of the ADC, paid a visit to Mr Amaechi on Thursday to mend fences within the fractured party.
It should be noted that before and after the primaries, there were rumours that he was urged to settle for Atiku’s running mate. However, the former governor has refuted the claims.
He said, “I went to see the national chairman of ADC. After our discussion, he walked me to the exit door, I shook his hands and I left. We discussed something different from what they wrote about.
“But people said I stormed out after he told me to run for VP. But I am not joking; nobody has ever told me to be vice-president because they know my worth and what will be my reaction.”
The former governor was visited on Thursday by Atiku, alongside several key ADC party leaders, in a direct bid aimed at reconciliation ahead of the general elections.
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