The All Progressives Congress has questioned Rotimi Amaechi’s suitability for the vice-presidency, citing his reported financial difficulties since leaving public office.
The APC made the position known in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, on Sunday in Abuja, while reacting to Amaechi’s recent comments about his financial situation and the death of his mother.
The party prayed for the repose of Dame Ezinne Mary Oduah Amaechi, while also wishing her son “excellent health of mind and body.”
Amaechi, a former Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, two-term governor and former Minister of Transportation, is the African Democratic Congress’ vice-presidential candidate for the 2027 election.
The APC seized on Amaechi’s reported inability to afford medication for his late mother, questioning how he could experience such financial hardship after years in prominent public positions.
“First, he howled that he had become so broke and hungry that his wife was now feeding him. Now, he has stated that his inability to afford medications killed his mother at 89,” Morka said.
The ruling party accused the former governor of relying heavily on public office, alleging that he had “freeloaded at the highest levels of public office” for four decades.
Morka argued that Amaechi’s financial situation after leaving government raised questions about his ability to remain productive outside political appointments.
“If Amaechi is not struggling with some kind of Peter Pan syndrome, then he must be a loafer, aimless and irresponsible for his inability to be productive and earn a living outside the patronage of public office,” the APC spokesman said.
The party also criticised Amaechi’s ambition to become vice-president in 2027, suggesting that the office could not be used as a means of securing personal financial comfort.
“The presidency is not a soup kitchen and will not be a soup kitchen for Rotimi Amaechi,” Morka declared.
He concluded that Amaechi’s own statements, rather than the APC’s assessment, offered the strongest argument against his candidacy.
“No one can speak more to Rotimi Amaechi’s unfitness for the office of Vice President than Rotimi Amaechi himself,” Morka said.