Rotimi Amaechi, the vice‑presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, explained on Friday that his children were compelled to enrol in schools outside Nigeria after former President Olusegun Obasanjo expelled his family from the country in 2006‑07.
Why did Amaechi’s family leave Nigeria?
Amaechi recounted that after winning the Peoples Democratic Party governorship primary in Rivers State in 2006, Obasanjo, who was then president, barred him from contesting the 2007 election. Facing a threat of arrest, Amaechi chose to leave Nigeria, spending roughly ten months in exile.
What did Amaechi say about the arrest threat?
"President Obasanjo tried to stop me from being a governor but you will see that I did not go to sleep, I went to court and when he threatened arrest, I left the country," he told News Central Television.
How did the exile affect his children’s education?
During the period abroad, Amaechi’s wife and children moved from one residence to another and were enrolled in schools overseas. Because they had already settled into foreign schools, returning to Nigeria to start anew was not feasible.
What is Amaechi’s final assessment?
He concluded that the inability of his children to attend Nigerian schools is a direct consequence of Obasanjo’s actions, stating, "My children did not go to Nigerian school because Obasanjo chased us out of Nigeria. My wife and children were running from one house to another. They had to go to school outside the country to stay alive and to keep learning."