Nyesom Wike, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, has taken a swipe at former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, in response to his recent “I’m hungry” comment.
Speaking on Monday during a media parley in Abuja, Wike dismissed Amaechi’s claim, saying the former Rivers State governor is hungry for power, not food.
Amaechi, while speaking at an event to mark his 60th birthday last week, had remarked on the state of the economy, saying, “We’re all hungry, all of us are. If you’re not hungry, I am. For us, the opposition, if you want us to remove the man in power, we can remove him from this power. In Nigeria, there are no capitalist ideas among the politicians; it’s about sharing.”
Responding, Wike said, “We have no time to listen to nonsense in Nigeria. I don’t understand why a man like Amaechi would choose his 60th birthday to lie to Nigerians about being hungry. He was Speaker from 1999 to 2007, Governor from 2007 to 2015, and Minister from 2015 to 2023. He never spoke about hunger during those years.”
Wike continued, “Now they are regrouping. They are only hungry for power. This shows his failure. How can you trivialise the issue of hunger? He joined Atiku and claimed hunger. It is clear he cannot stay out of power. From 1999 to 2023, Amaechi stood before Nigerians and claimed hunger. He was a former governor who couldn’t secure even 25% for Buhari during elections, despite being the campaign DG.”
“Thank God we did not support the PDP; otherwise, he would have taken the glory. He is now in a coalition. I don’t like to talk much. Let them form their team and start from home in Rivers.”
“Let’s see how he plans to remove the president. Is it a military coup? The term ‘removal’ is synonymous with dictatorship or military coup. Nigerians remember what happened in 2015, and now he claims Nigerians are hungry.”
“I am not a liability; I am an asset. You may dislike me, but I am an asset in ensuring President Tinubu wins a second term.”
Both Wike and Amaechi have served as governors of Rivers State. Amaechi governed from 2007 to 2015 before his appointment as Minister of Transportation by former President Muhammadu Buhari. He also chaired the Nigerian Governors’ Forum from 2011 to 2015.
Prior to his time as governor, he served as Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly from 1999 to 2007 and was the pioneer chairman of Nigeria’s Conference of Speakers of State Assemblies.
