Rotimi Amaechi, the former Minister of Transportation, recently revealed that while he was in office, he asked for 1,000 northerners to be given jobs. This was part of his effort to help reduce poverty in the northern part of Nigeria.

Amaechi explained that he instructed the Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) to employ 1,000 northerners. He made this decision because most of the workers in NIMASA at the time were from the southern regions.

The former Rivers State governor shared this information during an event in Abuja. He said that since the South-South and South-East had many employees in NIMASA, he wanted to create a balance by hiring more people from the North.

Amaechi added that poverty and unemployment were serious problems in northern Nigeria. To address this, he built the University of Transport in Daura and took other actions to improve opportunities there.

He also mentioned that he took some northerners to China for training, showing his commitment to helping them develop skills and find good jobs.

Amaechi’s steps show how he tried to support northern Nigerians during his time as minister under former President Muhammadu Buhari.