I Know Why Jonathan Removed Me – Sacked Minister Reveals

A former Minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Ms Ama Pepple, has explained the true reason why President Goodluck Jonathan made mass removal from office and sacked her in September 2013.

Pepple, who was fired along with eight other ministers nominated by governors and others opposed to President Jonathan, made these revelations in her exclusive interview to Sunday Sun in Abuja.

Apart from the policies she pursued in the housing sector as minister, Pepple has to her credit, the construction of a mausoleum for the first indigenous President of Nigeria, Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe and the construction of six federal secretariats across the country.

The former Head of Service of the Federation believed she was been efficient, effective and hardworking, but, she had opposed Jonathan one day and he fired her without remorse, despite she admitted that the president has the prerogative “to hire and fire”.

Pepple saluted the courage of some women at the National Assembly who were going for governorship elections. She believes a woman may become the President of Nigeria one day.

She refused to make specific comments on the role of the opposition party number one, the All Progressives Congress.

“All I can say is that in any country, you need a very strong opposition party. It leads to healthy competition and it is good for the county and not opposition for the sake of being opposition.”

She is currently a pastor and not doing anything, except church work. The ex-minister still has not decided whether she would return to politics:

“I leave it to God to determine for me. I think I still have a lot to offer this country if called upon to do so,” she said.

In the end of her interview she was also praying for peace to reign between President Jonathan and Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers state:

“Both of them are my brothers. One was my boss and still remains my President. And as a mother, I think the day the Rivers elders went to meet him and I had the opportunity of being there, I did what I should do as a mother.

“And now, I continue to pray that the God of peace will intervene and bring peace to my two brothers so that there will be peace in Rivers State and in Nigeria,” she concluded.