Former Minister of Transportation and ex-Rivers State Governor, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, has accused key political figures who frustrated former President Muhammadu Buhari’s electoral reform efforts of now pretending to champion the same cause they once sabotaged.

Speaking at the National Electoral Reform Summit in Abuja, Amaechi stated that many of those leading current reform campaigns were the very individuals who had pressured Buhari not to sign the landmark electoral amendment bill during his tenure.

“When we were in government, Buhari swore that one legacy he would leave behind was electoral reform — a process that would make sure every vote counted,” Amaechi said.

“But when the National Assembly brought the bill, some politicians went to him, pushed him beyond measure, and stopped him from signing. Now, those same people are the ones shouting for reform.”

Amaechi described the situation as the height of political hypocrisy and self-interest, arguing that Nigerian politicians often support or oppose reform only when it suits their fortunes.

“Most of those who talk about electoral reform do so depending on where their stomach is facing,” he said. “If they’re eating, they don’t want reform. If they’re hungry, suddenly they remember reform.”

He said the failure to institutionalise credible elections has left Nigeria trapped in a cycle of political deceit, where the same elites alternate between power and protest.

Amaechi, who served as Director-General of Buhari’s 2015 and 2019 presidential campaigns, said the former president’s refusal to sign the electoral bill was one of his biggest political missteps — a decision, he noted, that continues to haunt the nation.

“That singular act denied Nigeria a chance to entrench fairness in our electoral system,” he said. “If Buhari had signed it, we wouldn’t be here today talking about reform.”

Turning his attention to the current administration, Amaechi warned that those in power risk repeating the same mistake if they fail to allow free and credible elections.

“If tomorrow, President Tinubu and his people lose an election, they will suddenly become the loudest voices for reform,” he said. “It’s the same cycle — people only want justice when they are out of power.”

The former governor urged Nigerians to stop relying on politicians to deliver reform, insisting that only sustained civic pressure can force change.

“Will government give you reform? No. Don’t wait for NLC or NANS — they no longer exist in the way they used to,” he said. “It’s citizens’ participation that will stop those who don’t want reform.”

He concluded with a call for citizens to rise above manipulation and defend their democracy through mass participation.

“When you say results are already written, you’re spreading fear. If citizens come out in numbers, nobody can steal the result,” Amaechi declared. “Reform won’t come from government — it will come from you.”