Senator Adams Oshiomhole has criticised former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi, questioning his political consistency and dismissing his recent comments about the challenges facing presidential contenders ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 election.

Oshiomhole made the remarks during an interview on TVC while responding to Amaechi’s assessment of President Bola Tinubu’s potential challengers and former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar’s position in the presidential race.

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“If you know Amaechi, you won’t waste airtime talking about him,” Oshiomhole said.

The senator, a former governor of Edo State and former national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), questioned Amaechi’s credibility, pointing to his previous disagreement with Atiku over the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential primary.

Oshiomhole alleged that Amaechi had previously accused Atiku of emerging from a fraudulent primary and challenged the outcome in court.

He cited the dispute as evidence of what he described as inconsistency in Amaechi’s political positions.

“Here is Amaechi on record in your TVC coverage and other network stations, who said that his own boss, the presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar, that the primary that produce him was a fraudulent process, and Atiku stole the mandate, he didn’t win the mandate,” Oshiomhole said.

He further claimed that Atiku later reached an understanding with Amaechi over the disputed mandate.

“This is not social media, there are court documents, and Atiku went back to him and said okay, let’s share the stolen mandate together,” he said.

The claims about the alleged agreement and the circumstances surrounding the primary were presented by Oshiomhole during the interview.

They require independent verification before being treated as established facts.

Oshiomhole also referred to Amaechi’s political career, arguing that his emergence as Rivers State governor and subsequent appointment as a federal minister were not the result of direct electoral victories in the circumstances he described.

Amaechi became governor of Rivers State following a Supreme Court ruling in 2007.

He later served as Minister of Transportation under former President Muhammadu Buhari, who appointed him in 2015.

Reflecting on those events, Oshiomhole said Amaechi had benefited from political developments that shaped his career.

He also criticised Amaechi’s past descriptions of other political figures as ethnic champions, arguing that the former governor had portrayed himself differently before the ADC primaries.

“He referred to Atiku as an ethnic champion. He referred to every other person as an ethnic champion. He was the only non-ethnic champion in the ADC before their primaries,” Oshiomhole said.

The exchange comes amid discussions over the political alignments and possible contenders ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

Amaechi had argued that Tinubu faced more challengers from the South, while Atiku had fewer opponents because he was from the North.

Oshiomhole challenged Amaechi’s assessment and questioned his characterisation of other political leaders, particularly in a country with Nigeria’s ethnic and regional diversity.

The disagreement highlights tensions among political figures as parties and potential candidates position themselves ahead of the next general election.

However, Oshiomhole’s comments represent his own assessment of Amaechi and his political record.

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The claims surrounding the ADC primary and the alleged agreement with Atiku should be assessed against relevant court records and statements from the individuals involved.