2027: Amaechi vows to resign if Nigeria fails to change within one year

Vice-presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Rotimi Amaechi, has pledged to resign from office if the country fails to record significant improvements within one year of an ADC government taking power in 2027.

Amaechi made the statement during an interview on AIT’s Democracy Today on Wednesday, where he outlined security, education and economic development as major priorities of an ADC administration.

According to him, tackling corruption would be critical to achieving progress in these areas because public resources meant for development were being diverted for personal use.

“We must deal with three things. We must deal with security; we must deal with education; we must deal with the economy. And to do all that, corruption will have to come down because there’s no money for anybody to steal,” he said.

Amaechi also criticised the removal of petrol subsidy by the administration of President Bola Tinubu, arguing that Nigerians had yet to see sufficient benefits from the policy.

“President Tinubu removed subsidy. What are the benefits of subsidy? Subsidy money is in private pockets and they are celebrating,” he said.

The ADC candidate further expressed concern about the level of poverty in the country, contrasting it with the lavish spending he said he had witnessed at some social events.

He said he sometimes left such gatherings after only a few minutes because he questioned how some people were able to spend so much money despite the widespread economic hardship.

“I sit down and ask myself, where are these people getting this money from, going by how high poverty is in Nigeria?” Amaechi said.

Speaking about the economy, he also raised concerns over Nigeria’s dependence on imported finished products, claiming that the country imports more than 46 per cent of such goods.

“Who are those importing? Nigeria is in trouble,” he said.

Amaechi also referred to reports of Nigerians booing President Tinubu during his arrival at the Lagos International Airport, saying an ADC government would seek to change the circumstances that lead to such public reactions.

“I watched people hoot at Tinubu from the Lagos International Airport to his house. If we become President, nobody will do that, they will be clapping for us because we will change Nigeria,” he said.

His one-year pledge comes shortly after Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike challenged President Tinubu to remove him from office if he fails to deliver the FCT to the President in the 2027 election.

Amaechi, however, said he was willing to make a similar commitment regarding the performance of an ADC administration.

“This time, I will say it. If Nigeria does not begin to change one year after we’ve come to office, come to me, I will resign,” he declared.