El Rufai’s Arise News mind game with Ribadu

Nasir El-Rufai claimed in his interview with Arise News that someone intercepted and recorded his former friend Nuhu Ribadu’s phone call in which Ribadu allegedly instructed El-Rufai’s arrest.

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He acknowledged the illegality of the act but said the government had used similar methods against him.

My strong suspicion is that El-Rufai is merely playing mind games. It is operationally improbable that a serving NSA, with all the personnel and paraphernalia available to him, would issue a sensitive directive of that nature over an unsecure call. I would bet my bottom dollar that the claim is made up.

Still, the allegation serves powerful and artful rhetorical warfare purposes, which El-Rufai appears to have calculatedly designed. If authorities pursue action based on his admission of illegal interception, critics may interpret this as indirect validation of his story, thereby injuring Ribadu’s professional competence and judgment.

In other words, arresting El-Rufai for admitting that he illegally obtained help to intercept and listen in on the NSA’s call could authenticate his claim, which I strongly suspect is manufactured for psychological warfare, and portray the NSA as vindictive and unprofessional for supposedly relaying sensitive information through insecure means.

By admitting to the illegality of the interception, he is begging to be apprehended to give an indirect stamp of legitimacy to what I suspect is an intentionally strategic fib.

But if authorities ignore the claim, some observers may assume it is true. Silence in this context could be construed as consent.

At the same time, if the NSA’s office issues a public denial, El-Rufai could plausibly commission AI tools to generate a voice call mimicking the NSA’s voice. Convincing AI-generated voice simulations are no longer difficult to produce, and people’s gullibility seems to be at an all-time high.

Finally, El-Rufai’s remarks may also be designed to induce paranoia within Ribadu’s inner circles. Suggesting that someone taped the NSA implies that either close associates of his or elements within the SSS are monitoring him on behalf of adversaries. That kind of insinuation can foster a crippling persecution complex.

Of course, if Ribadu issued no such order, or communicated only through secure channels, he would simply laugh off El-Rufai’s claim as a wily but unsuccessful mind game from a former friend who’s still hurting from his unexpected exclusion from the orbit of power.

El-Rufai’s ultimate objective, however, appears to be to cultivate public sympathy ahead of his scheduled appearance at the EFCC on Monday while simultaneously attempting to psychologically unsettle his adversaries. Interesting times!

•Written By Farooq Kperogi