The African Democratic Congress vice-presidential candidate, Rotimi Amaechi, has blamed his defeat in the 2022 All Progressives Congress presidential primary on his decision to follow the advice of former President Muhammadu Buhari not to campaign ahead of the contest.

Amaechi said Buhari had assured him in writing that he would announce him as his preferred candidate, prompting him to avoid lobbying delegates and negotiating political alliances before the primary.

He disclosed this during an interview on Mainland 98.3FM’s The Situation Room programme in Lagos on Friday, while reflecting on how President Bola Tinubu defeated him to secure the APC presidential ticket in 2022.

According to Amaechi, he trusted Buhari’s assurance because the former president was his boss and believed his endorsement would give him an advantage over other aspirants.

“The first mistake that I made at that primary was that I listened to President Buhari. He said to me, ‘Don’t campaign. Don’t do anything. I will announce you as my candidate.’

“He told me that. He put it in writing. When I write my book, I’ll put it out,” Amaechi said.

The former Minister of Transportation said his decision not to negotiate political positions with governors and other influential party members also weakened his chances, giving Tinubu room to build alliances ahead of the contest.

He argued that he could have secured the support of governors by promising political appointments, including the vice-presidency and the position of Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

“Now, I didn’t do deals. So I would have promised you vice-president, promised you SGF, and then would have gone for this primary, I would have possibly won. I would have had governors on my side.

“Because I didn’t do deals, Tinubu had the chance to do deals,” he said.

Amaechi also accused Tinubu of exploiting religious sentiments to secure support from delegates, particularly in the North.

He, however, insisted that he would not use religion as a political tool to win elections, describing his position as a reflection of his nationalist convictions.

The ADC chieftain alleged that a delegation of Southern Yoruba Muslims approached governors in the North-West and appealed to them to support Tinubu on religious grounds.

He also cited former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, whom he said had initially supported his presidential ambition before eventually backing Tinubu.

“El-Rufai was my supporter. El-Rufai, in a viral video, said this is done for the faith,” Amaechi said.

He warned that appealing to religious identity for political support could deepen divisions in the country, insisting that he would not encourage such an approach even if it offered him an electoral advantage.

“I wouldn’t want to run that kind of federation. Catholics are 35 million in Nigeria. I wouldn’t want to go to the Catholic Church and say, please announce me. Tell them that all Catholics must go out and vote Amaechi.

“It will cause confusion. It will cause problems in the country. That makes me a nationalist,” he said.

Amaechi also questioned the perception of Tinubu as an exceptionally strategic politician, asking why he had not become president earlier if his political success was driven by an extraordinary ability to manoeuvre.

At the APC presidential primary held at Eagle Square, Abuja, in June 2022, Tinubu polled 1,271 votes to defeat Amaechi, who secured 316 votes, alongside other aspirants.

The victory paved the way for Tinubu to emerge as the APC candidate in the 2023 presidential election, which he won.

Amaechi served as Minister of Transportation under Buhari and was a close political ally of the former president. He also directed Buhari’s successful 2015 presidential campaign.

He is now running as the vice-presidential candidate to former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar on the ADC ticket for the 2027 presidential election.