\u201cMy first confrontation with bribe was with a big contractor in Rivers State. After awarding the contract, he brought a billion naira. I screamed said the Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi at a forum in Lagos.<\/p>\n
Amaechi speaking at the first annual lecture organised by CKN news with the theme, \u201cThe Role Of The Social Media In Socio-Economic And Political Development Of Nigeria,\u201d held in Lagos said he rejected the bribe because of his principled stance on corruption.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy first confrontation with bribe was with a big contractor in Rivers State. After awarding the contract, he brought a billion naira. I screamed. \u201cI asked, \u2018where did you get the money?\u2019 and he said from what he got (from the contract) and I said \u2018look, that means you overquoted the contract\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cI said \u2018the only reason you are giving me N1 billion was because if the contract was N32 billion, you made it N37 billion\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have been special assistant to the governor for two years; speaker, eight years; governor, eight years; minister nearly two years\u2026that\u2019s nearly twenty years.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I know Nigerian politics well. Very, very well,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Speaking on social media in Nigeria\u2019s political and socio-economic development Amaechi said that in spite of its positive uses, the social media is capable of destroying Nigeria if not checked.<\/p>\n
The Minister noted that so many politicians engage the social media to tarnish the image of their counterparts saying that most of them engage young men to come up with stories that do not exist against their enemies in politics.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen it was published that I own a property worth N50 million, I just waved it aside that the news wont go anywhere until it became serious. The social media misinform the public, they don\u2019t verify their information, they have no rules and they can publish anything. It is a tool that politicians use to damage the reputation of another politician.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a governor, if you don\u2019t want crime to continue, the best thing is to create wealth. The feedback the social media platform provides helps to check the efficiency of the government, and in the bid to create employment, politicians have made use of the platform to reach out to prospective candidates.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSocial media can destroy this country, true or false? Just look at Biafra; and that\u2019s why Nnamdi Kanu can say all he is saying and still get a forum. \u201cMost politicians pay young men to post all sorts on social media.\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was governor for eight years, for about seven years people used to say \u2018this man is arrogant\u2019, how did they suddenly say this man is corrupt?,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cPDP used to say \u2018Amaechi is our response to Fashola\u2019. So when did they suddenly say \u2018Oh, he didn\u2019t do anything. \u201cAnd I say to people, because somebody just went to pay AIT money and, on social media too, there\u2019s no rule. AIT came to put some things on their television, then social media came to write nonsense.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first time they attacked us we came out with document. But they (social media users) don\u2019t verify. On the controversial $43 million Ikoyi fund, Mr. Amaechi said people claiming that he owned the money were peddlers of false information.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen they said that I owned $43 million Ikoyi money\u2026 I made just a one-page reply: \u2018I don\u2019t even own a house in Lagos\u2019. \u201cI thought people would have said, \u2018Ah, eight years as governor, he should be a very rich thief, so he should be able to get a property in Lagos and use it as a form of investment\u2019. Nobody!<\/p>\n
\u201cMany people started celebrating, \u2018It\u2019s Amaechi\u2019s money, it\u2019s Amaechi\u2019s money\u2019. But people who know me know (that) if I have money, you will know.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen people meet me and I am not able to spend, it is just basically because I don\u2019t have money\u2026 The important thing is, money doesn\u2019t govern me. \u201cBut social media twist it the other way; so the problem with social media (users) is that they misinform\u2026they don\u2019t verify their information, they have no rules. Only decent ones.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNigerians say I am stubborn, am I stubborn?\u201d, he asked. His question generated echoes of \u201cYes!\u201d from the audience. \u201cStop there,\u201d he continued, \u201cLet me tell you why you are wrong: once you are a principled man, then you are stubborn.<\/p>\n
\u201cNigeria doesn\u2019t have any word called principle,\u201d Mr. Amaechi said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt just shows that we need to go back to our value system, so that we can put a place where we can add principle\u2026where they can give you money and you look at the man and tell the man, \u2018keep the money\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
Commenting further, Mr. Amaechi said the removal of Goodluck Jonathan as Nigeria\u2019s president, was a bigger threat than Biafra.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe removal of President Jonathan was a bigger threat than Biafra. Nigeria was inching towards the civil war. So, forget the talk about secession; Nigeria cannot breakup,\u201d Amaechi said.<\/p>\n
He also said that the social media would play an important role in the 2019 general elections.<\/p>\n
The Director of Public Affairs, Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC), Tony Ojobo who represented the commission at the event however disclosed that the agency has established an act to caution frivolous and inhuman posts in the social media.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cMy first confrontation with bribe was with a big contractor in Rivers State. After awarding the contract, he brought a billion naira. I screamed said the Minister of Transport, Rotimi…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":52920,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-58097","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exclusive"],"yoast_head":"\n