Former Governor of River State, Chibuike Amaechi, has said that the political class now rides on the strength of ethnicity to achieve their aim of winning political offices.

The former minister of transport said the country is still in search of national leaders.

Amaechi, who was the guest speaker at the 2023 TheNiche Annual Lecture themed “Why We Stride and Slip: Leadership, Nationalism, and the Nigerian Condition,” held on Thursday in Lagos, added that the only person near that point of nationalism was former President Olusegun Obasanjo, insisting that the rest were ethnic leaders.

“Most times, we elect those who openly show that they are ethnic leaders and they are there for their ethnic group,” he said.

“Our political elites constantly run to their ethnic bases to provoke ethnic debate each time they fail to win advantages in their struggle for power and privilege at the national level.

“The only person near that point of Nationalism, with all due respect, is ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo. The rest are ethnic leaders.

“Truly remarkable national leadership is the ability of a leader to galvanise the totality of a nation around the common national banner with a vision and a sense of mission.

“The truly remarkable national leader is the one who can rise above limitations to take the nation and its people to that place they long for but have never been before.

“It is a place of national greatness, pride, achievements, and shared goals, aspirations, and prosperity,” he added.