Judith Amaechi Denies Allegation of Receiving ₦4 Billion Monthly from NDDC, Labels Wike’s Claim as Baseless

Judith Amaechi, wife of Nigeria’s former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, has firmly denied accusations made by the current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, that she received ₦4 billion each month from the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) for women’s training and empowerment programs. She dismissed the statement as “unfounded and ridiculous.”

In a detailed rebuttal issued on her behalf, Mrs. Amaechi also condemned Wike’s claim that she was implicated in a corruption-related investigation involving the NDDC. She described the accusation as a calculated attempt at character assassination intended to gain political mileage.

Both political figures — Wike and Rotimi Amaechi — have deep roots in the political landscape of Rivers State, an oil-producing region in Nigeria’s Niger Delta. The duo once shared similar affiliations, having each served as governor of the state.

According to LMSINT MEDIA, Rotimi Amaechi governed Rivers State between May 2007 and May 2015. His tenure ended when Wike succeeded him and completed his own eight-year term in office. Since then, the once-cordial relationship between the two political heavyweights has deteriorated into open rivalry, often marked by public accusations and counter-accusations.

In a recent interview aired in early July 2025, Nyesom Wike alleged that Mrs. Amaechi had received a total of ₦48 billion — ₦4 billion monthly — from the NDDC to fund empowerment programs for women in the region.

However, responding through her spokesperson, Dike Bekwele, on Tuesday, Judith Amaechi denied ever receiving such funds from the NDDC. Bekwele insisted there was “no shred of truth” in Wike’s claim against Mrs. Amaechi or the NGO she founded, the Empowerment Support Initiative (ESI).

“Dame Judith Amaechi has neither received nor benefited from any ₦4 billion monthly allocation from the NDDC,” Bekwele clarified.

He elaborated that ESI’s partnership with the NDDC was a mutual arrangement aimed at co-sponsoring human capital development programs, especially for youths and women in the Niger Delta. According to him, the initiative focused on boosting small business owners, including nano and micro enterprises, through capacity-building and entrepreneurship training.

Bekwele criticized Wike’s remarks as not only misleading but also defamatory. He argued that there has been no official release of any forensic audit report from the NDDC indicting Mrs. Amaechi or ESI.

“For Mr. Wike to publicly claim that ESI or Dame Judith was mentioned in a supposed NDDC forensic audit — which has yet to be made accessible to Nigerians — is completely reckless. The accusation is baseless, absurd, and clearly an invention of Wike’s imagination,” the statement read.

Mrs. Amaechi, undeterred by the allegations, challenged Wike to present the version of the audit report that allegedly links her or her foundation to any form of misconduct. She maintained her innocence and urged the public to disregard what she termed politically motivated propaganda.