Former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, has said Nigerians expecting the government to initiate meaningful electoral reforms are “wasting their time,” stressing that only citizens’ collective pressure can compel genuine change in the country’s electoral system.
Amaechi stated this on Tuesday at the National Electoral Reform Summit held in Abuja with the theme “Critical Constitutional Amendment for Credible Elections in 2027.” The event was organised by the National Consultative Front, Labour, and Civil Society Front.
Naijaonpoint reports that the former minister argued that no government would willingly introduce reforms that would reduce the political class’s power, urging Nigerians to take ownership of the demand for electoral change.
“Citizens’ participation will stop those who don’t want reform. Will government give you reform? No, government will not give you reform,” Amaechi said.
He lamented the decline of civic movements that once shaped public accountability, noting that the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), and National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) had lost their influence.
“There is no NLC. There is no ASUU. There is no NANS,” he said, recalling that in the 1980s, “there was no student action without NLC and no student action without ASUU.”
Amaechi identified corruption and weak institutions as key factors undermining democracy in Nigeria. According to him, the problem is not the absence of laws but the absence of respect for the rule of law.
He stated, “It’s not that we lack law. What we lack is the rule of law. Everybody is passing laws here and there, but nothing is happening.”
He urged Nigerians to begin agitation for electoral reforms before elections, rather than waiting until after, when it would be too late.
“If you are waiting for government to make any reform, you are wasting your time. Before election, there must be resistance because they don’t want proper election. If you do it after election, you are also wasting your time,” he said.
Amaechi also criticised political leaders for enriching themselves at the expense of ordinary citizens, warning that without citizens’ intervention, the cycle of corruption would continue.
He said, “Nigerians are hungry. If they are not hungry, I am hungry. Those few people who are supporting the government say they are not hungry because they are joining in the stealing. The stealing is beyond what we fought for.”
The former minister accused politicians of manipulating the system to shield themselves from accountability.
Amaechi added, “If you don’t stop politicians, they will continue to steal, because the system does not stop them. If you are with the government and you are stealing, nothing will happen. But if you are not supporting the government, they will catch you for stealing billions of dollars.”
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