By Adesakin Adefemi
Former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi has said he, not President Bola Tinubu, was the key figure behind Muhammadu Buhari’s victory in the 2015 presidential election.
Speaking on Arise News’ Prime Time on Friday, Amaechi responded to longstanding claims by Tinubu that he was instrumental in making Buhari president. The former Minister of Transportation said he could not challenge the assertion earlier because he was serving as a minister under Buhari.
“When we decided to form the APC, while I was a minister, he was claiming he made Buhari president, and I couldn’t respond because I was a minister under President Buhari. That would have been suicidal because Buhari could fire you,” Amaechi said.
He added that he served as Director-General of Buhari’s 2015 and 2019 campaigns and led the political battle across the country. According to him, he criss-crossed Nigeria mobilizing support and pushing the message of change as chairman of the Governors’ Forum.
“So I couldn’t have said, ‘You are wrong.’ He didn’t make President Buhari president. Not only was I the DG of the campaign, but everybody will bear witness that I did all the battle,” Amaechi stated.
The former governor was also a central figure in the 2013–2014 defection of Peoples Democratic Party governors that helped form the APC alliance. That alliance defeated President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015.
Tinubu, for his part, has repeatedly said Buhari would not have become president without him, citing his role in merging the Action Congress of Nigeria with other opposition parties to form the APC ahead of the 2015 election.
Amaechi’s remarks come as he positions himself for the 2027 presidential race under the African Democratic Congress. He has been increasingly vocal in criticizing the Tinubu administration over economic hardship and governance.
The comments revive a long-running debate within the APC over credit for the party’s historic 2015 win, which marked Nigeria’s first opposition victory at the presidential level.
