Judith Amaechi, wife of former Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi, has strongly denied claims by FCT Minister Nyesom Wike that she received ₦4 billion monthly from the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) for women empowerment initiatives.
Describing the allegation as “absurd, baseless, and a figment of Wike’s imagination,” Mrs. Amaechi said the claims were politically motivated and intended as subtle blackmail.
The long-standing political rivalry between Wike and Rotimi Amaechi — both former governors of oil-rich Rivers State — has seen frequent public spats. In a July 2025 interview, Wike alleged that Judith Amaechi received ₦4bn monthly, totalling ₦48bn annually, for training Niger Delta women, and further claimed she was named in a corruption probe related to the NDDC.
Responding in a statement on Tuesday, her spokesperson Dike Bekwele said neither Judith nor her NGO, the Empowerment Support Initiative (ESI), was ever indicted in any published audit.
“Dame Judith Amaechi has never received ₦4bn monthly from the NDDC,” the statement read. “The partnership between ESI and the NDDC was to co-fund youth and women empowerment programmes in the Niger Delta. Any claims of wrongdoing are false.”
The statement challenged Wike to publicly release any forensic audit report that shows she or ESI was implicated.
“In the likely event that Wike fails to provide such a report, we challenge him to honour his words, resign as Minister of the FCT and issue an unreserved public apology to the nation.”
