Amaechi Blames Weak Opposition for Electoral Setbacks
Former Minister of Transportation and chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Rotimi Amaechi, has attributed Nigeria’s electoral challenges to the failure of opposition parties, insisting that incumbency is not the country’s major political problem.
Amaechi made the remarks while addressing a public lecture, a video of which trended on Friday. According to him, President Bola Tinubu is not politically unbeatable, stressing that the inability of opposition parties to organise and present a credible alternative has been their greatest undoing.
“Tinubu isn’t invincible; the opposition is the problem. I don’t see him as invincible. The problem is the opposition,” Amaechi said.
His comments come amid ongoing internal crises within opposition parties, many of which have been plagued by factional disputes, leadership tussles, and defections that have weakened their capacity to challenge the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
While several opposition figures have accused Tinubu and the APC of deliberately sponsoring defections to destabilise rival parties, Amaechi dismissed such claims, arguing that opposition leaders must take responsibility for their own shortcomings.
According to the former Rivers State governor, opposition parties are more focused on ethnic, regional, and power-sharing calculations than on governance, policy direction, or national renewal.
“I tell the opposition party that you’re the problem. Nobody is saying, ‘Things are bad, how do we change the candidate?’ All they discuss is one term or two terms. Nothing else is discussed,” he said.
He added that while political elites obsess over how to gain power, ordinary voters often end up enabling those ambitions without meaningful engagement on governance and accountability.
In July 2025, the ADC emerged as a coalition platform adopted by opposition leaders seeking to challenge Tinubu in the 2027 general election. Amaechi joined the party in July, followed by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar in November, while former Anambra State governor Peter Obi joined on December 31.
The trio are all widely believed to be interested in contesting the ADC’s presidential ticket ahead of the 2027 polls.
Amaechi also disclosed that he has been engaging in behind-the-scenes consultations with political actors as preparations intensify for the next general election.
“If you ask those who meet with me, they will tell you that I have been having meetings and talking to them about the possibility of winning the 2027 election,” he said.
His comments have further stirred debate about the future of Nigeria’s opposition politics and the prospects of mounting a united front against the ruling party in the next election cycle.
