- The former minister said he has never sponsored thuggery.
- He added that his priest warned him such actions would deny him entry into heaven.
Rotimi Amaechi, Rivers’ former governor, claims that many of the state’s politicians rose to prominence under his guidance.
Amaechi governed Rivers from 2007 to 2015 and later served as Transportation Minister under President Muhammadu Buhari from 2015 to 2022.
In an interview with ABN TV, Amaechi described Rivers as a state where betrayal is rampant, dubbing it the “capital of betrayal”
“Name one politician in Port Harcourt that is in the space that didn’t pass through me, they can’t stand hunger,” the ex-governor said.
“Rivers State has become the capital of betrayals, just name one politician who didn’t pass through me.
“Sim was an accountant under me, he was an accountant when Wike was governor, When I became governor, Wike became Chief of Staff but, I don’t like calling his name, unfortunately I don’t know why I’m calling his name I have made my mind not to call his name.
“Just name any Rivers politician that didn’t pass through me — only people you can mention the people like Uche Secondus, we were contemporary, maybe Senator Lee.
“It’s not about mentorship it’s about hunger a lot of them are hungry and could not manage the situation.
“I joined politics at the age of 22 and there were two camps: Rufus George camp,very poor and broke; we hardly had food to eat and Abule’s camp which was very rich and everybody was rushing to him, he had a bank.
“But those of us who bothered about character, because my father taught me character, stood with Rufus without knowing if we will win or not.
“And at the end of the day, God delivered us and we became government. He became governor and I became Special Assistant.
“The same thing with Odili, he didn’t have money but we stood with him because it’s about character.
“The crop of politicians then are different from what we have now —I am not interested in politics…I will discuss politics at the right time.”
Amaechi harped that his two core principles for political mentees are honesty as the foundation and dedication to serving the public interest.
“For anybody who passed through me, the first thing you learn is about honesty; if they are honest, then they have done well.
“The second thing you will learn is service to the people, while the total you will learn is don’t take anybody’s life.”