Sule Lamido and I would’ve challenged Tinubu if we were governors – Amaechi

Former Rivers State governor, Rotimi Amaechi, has said Nigeria’s political climate would look markedly different if his generation of governors still held office, insisting that he and former Jigawa governor Sule Lamido would have boldly challenged President Bola Tinubu.

Speaking in Abuja on Tuesday at the launch of Lamido’s autobiography, Being True to Myself, Amaechi reflected on the assertive and confrontational style of governance that defined their era.

“I asked you (Lamido) this morning, what is going on currently in the country, in Nigerian politics — would it have happened when we were governors? You said no. And the answer is no,” Amaechi said.

“We would confront the government, confront the president. That’s how radical we were, that’s how our governors forum operated, that’s how determined we were to change things.”

Amaechi, who chaired the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) during Lamido’s second term, recalled their turbulent yet productive working relationship. While acknowledging ideological rifts, including Lamido’s initial resistance to his NGF leadership, he described their time in office as a period of bold defiance and political integrity.

“We were quite good friends in government. We had our bad times when we disagreed,” Amaechi noted.

“I made the mistake of assuming he was as radical as I was. So, he was one of the governors I clung to when it came to radical decisions.”

One such disagreement, Amaechi recounted, marked the eventual split in their political paths when a group of governors broke with then-President Goodluck Jonathan. While Amaechi and others threw their weight behind the newly formed All Progressives Congress (APC), Lamido charted a different course, aligning with the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

Amaechi promised to privately contribute to Lamido’s memoir, describing their legacy as one shaped by courage and conviction.

His remarks came on the heels of his criticism of President Tinubu’s recent intervention in Rivers State politics, which he branded a “brazen attempt” at a power grab.

Amaechi accused the president of leveraging state authority to intimidate governors into political submission and safeguard his re-election ambitions.