Former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi has called on President Bola Tinubu to demonstrate genuine confidence ahead of the 2027 elections by instructing the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, to refrain from interfering in the judiciary and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Amaechi made the remarks on Friday during an interview on Channels Television, where he reacted to reports that Tinubu had mobilised his political base while downplaying opposition efforts under the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
“If he’s confident, tell him to tell Nuhu Ribadu to leave his judiciary and INEC. Why apply the use of the institutions, the federal institutions against the ADC?
“Tell him that if he’s confident, he should instruct his national security adviser to leave the judiciary and INEC alone and see whether he’ll win the election,” the former minister of transportation said.
When asked to provide further clarification, Amaechi declined.
“I will not explain. If you don’t have eyes, leave it. Even Tinubu, he knows that. And he brags about it. That’s the funny part of it,” he said.
Amaechi also criticised INEC’s interpretation of a Court of Appeal ruling concerning the ADC’s leadership dispute, rejecting claims that the party lacks leadership.
“Look at the interpretation of the ruling or judgment by the Court of Appeal. Amupitan interpreted the judgment to be that we are leaderless. But that’s not true. And that’s not what the law says,” Amaechi said.
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The former governor, who previously directed President Muhammadu Buhari’s presidential campaigns in 2015 and 2019, has recently aligned with the ADC as part of opposition efforts ahead of the 2027 polls.
His comments come against the backdrop of an escalating leadership crisis within the party. INEC had, on April 2, withdrawn recognition of the party’s national chairman, David Mark, and national secretary, Rauf Aregbesola, citing a Court of Appeal directive to maintain the status quo pending the resolution of a legal challenge initiated by a rival faction loyal to Nafiu Bala Gombe.
A day later, INEC chairman Joash Amupitan cautioned the party against conducting congresses or a national convention without the commission’s supervision, warning that violating an existing court order could invalidate any electoral victory secured under such circumstances.
“Don’t do anything. Don’t take any step that will render any proceeding before the court nugatory,” Amupitan said at the time.
In response, the ADC rejected INEC’s position, arguing that the “status quo” referenced by the court referred to the period before Gombe approached the judiciary, when Mark was still recognised as chairman.
The party’s spokesperson, Bolaji Abdullahi, further alleged that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) was behind the internal crisis, claiming that a federal minister had sponsored a planned protest in Abuja calling for Mark’s removal.
In recent months, the ADC has drawn several prominent political figures, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso, boosting its visibility as a potential opposition platform ahead of the 2027 general elections.The number