As the politics of 2027 take shape, former governor Nasir El-Rufai has emerged as one of the All Progressives Congress party’s fiercest critics. Yet he was once one of its staunchest supporters — it was his signature in 2013 that helped establish the ruling party as it stands today.
It was a sight that seemed unthinkable in Nigeria just a year ago.
Kaduna State’s former governor (2015–2023) Nasir El-Rufai of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and the vice president, Atiku Abubakar of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), sat next to each other onstage at a public forum in Abuja.
El-Rufai, who had been one of Atiku’s fiercest critics in recent years, was discussing the future of Nigeria’s democracy with his rival and the need for opposition parties to unite to defeat the APC in 2027.
Dark days
He said the PDP played a significant role in the late 1990s by ending military rule, but the party would need to form an alliance with others to unseat the President Bola Tinubu-led APC, which, he claimed, had nearly taken Nigeria back to the dark days of military rule.
This would be no easy feat, given that most opposition parties were facing internal crises that appeared to be orchestrated.
“There seems to be a project to destroy all the opposition political parties,” he said, adding that the only option for the opposition was to set aside their differences, unite, and create a broad platform.
This platform, he said, will “drive away the military again because we are almost there”.
Addressing former vice president Atiku, El-Rufai added: “So, your excellency, we need your experience and skills.”
The former governor’s remarks drew the ire of his party, the APC, which issued a statement dismissing the event entirely and rejecting claims that the ruling party was behind the crises in opposition parties.
“The suggestion by opposition figures like Atiku, [Labour Party’s] Peter Obi and, recently, aggrieved leaders like Mallam Nasir El-Rufai that our great party may be complicit in the internal corrosion of opposition parties is pitiful,” the APC said in a statement.
Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State, El-Rufai’s successor and estranged political protégé, also made indirect snide remarks about him while praising Tinubu as Nigeria’s best president. Sani, however, downplayed any rift between himself and his predecessor.
But El-Rufai was done with the charade. He pointedly accused Sani of being a sycophant for taking sides with Tinubu.
Taking on Ribadu
El-Rufai also officially confirmed his feud with national security adviser Nuhu Ribadu, his former close ally, whom he had supported when Ribadu was appointed chairman of Nigeria’s anti-corruption watchdog in 2004.
The former governor and Ribadu went into exile together in 2008, joining forces against then-President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua. They held TED Talks and rallied the international community against the government.
Although the two later fell out, they never publicly acknowledged their dispute. Rumours of a rift resurfaced after El-Rufai was nominated for a position in Tinubu’s cabinet but was controversially dropped.
Several reports suggested that Ribadu played a role in the decision. However, in an attempt to dispel these speculations, Ribadu shared a photograph with El-Rufai late last year as proof that all was well between them.
But El-Rufai was no longer willing to maintain the pretense. Activist and Atiku campaigner Naja’atu Muhammad had claimed in a viral TikTok video that Ribadu, while serving as Nigeria’s anti-corruption chief in 2006, had labelled Tinubu as corrupt.
Ribadu not only denied the allegation but also issued a pre-litigation letter to Muhammad, demanding an apology. However, El-Rufai seized the opportunity to make a point.
“Nuhu (Ribadu) must have serious amnesia. The record of proceedings in the Senate will confirm that Nuhu made those statements sometime in 2006,” the former governor tweeted.
Vengeance?
This was the same man who, in 2013, signed a document approving the merger of opposition parties, leading to the creation of the APC, which went on to win the 2015 presidential election.
El-Rufai’s recent actions have become a cause for concern within the ruling APC, especially as he has been holding late-night meetings with key opposition figures who are known political adversaries of President Tinubu.
A spokesperson for the president, Daniel Bwala, wrote in an article that the former governor’s recent moves are “not borne out of patriotism, but a need for vengeance”, urging him to reconsider his actions.
“The opposition sees that singular element of vengeance as a veritable tool for your recruitment,” Bwala added.
However, El-Rufai says he has not left the APC — rather, it is the APC that has left him behind.
Analysts argue that the former governor’s behaviour is not surprising, given that he was sidelined by the president.
“If El-Rufai had been part of Tinubu’s cabinet, he wouldn’t be doing all this,” says Richard Akinnola, a veteran journalist and lawyer.
From friend to foe
El-Rufai was one of Tinubu’s most ardent supporters ahead of the 2023 presidential campaign.
He went as far as declaring war on some of then-President Muhammadu Buhari’s appointees who were obstructing Tinubu’s campaign. The former governor even sued the Buhari administration over its controversial naira redesign policy, which nearly derailed Tinubu’s election.
In recognition of his contributions to the campaign, Tinubu publicly urged El-Rufai to abandon his plans for academic pursuits abroad and instead serve in his administration. El-Rufai had been promised the position of energy minister and was expected to address Nigeria’s persistent electricity crisis.
However, after his nomination and screening by the Senate, he was dropped by Tinubu due to allegations that he had contributed to the security crisis in Kaduna State, where Christian minorities were targeted.
Additionally, the Tinubu administration has been investigating El-Rufai for fraud and is prosecuting some of his close associates, including his former finance commissioner and Jimi Lawal, one of his most trusted advisers.
Richard Akinnola, author of History of Coup D’états in Nigeria, told The Africa Report that El-Rufai’s unpredictable nature could complicate the proposed coalition.
“El-Rufai was Atiku’s man in 1999 when Atiku gave him an appointment. When President Oluṣẹgun Obasanjo and Atiku had a feud, El-Rufai switched sides and began insulting Atiku. El-Rufai is only loyal to himself, making him difficult to trust,” Akinnola said.
(The Africa Report)
