The Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi on Thursday said President Muhammadu Buhari’s second term bid will be more difficult than it was in 2015 when the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) wrestled power from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Amaechi said this in a chat with journalists on Thursday at his office.
“It was not easy last time but it will be more difficult now. Why it would be difficult, more difficult? Expectations were too high, and a lot of people felt that we did not meet those expectation but they are not looking at what it takes to meet those expectation,” he said.
The minister also confirmed that there are corrupt officials in President Muhammadu Buhari’s government but this was insignificant compared to what was obtainable in the last administration.
“I will nearly be a foolish man to say that there is no corruption in this government, but compare the magnitude if there is any,” he said.
“Before it was with impunity. Now there are consequences for stealing.
“For any reason we lose election, you the young ones are taking yourselves and Nigeria 10 steps backwards because the elites who left through PDP are waiting in the wind.”
The former Rivers State governor also insisted that corruption will fully return to the country “automatically” if Nigerians vote out President Buhari in 2019.
“Let me tell you, if we don’t win, corruption will come back automatically,” he said. “Nobody will beg it.”
He said members of his former party, which is now the main opposition, the Peoples Democratic Party, have been “hungry” for four years because they are out of power.
“They have been out for four years and they have never been out of government before; PDP never left government, so now they are hungry. Not hungry for power, in fact if you tell them that I want to keep power and I will give you money, they will say take power and give us the money,” he said.
He said reelecting President Buhari will however not be an easy task because of the perception of Nigerians that the president had failed to meet the high expectations of Nigerians that led to his election in 2019.
