The presidency has sharply rebuked Nasir El-Rufai, the former Kaduna State Governor, following his attacks on the All Progressives Congress (APC) and President Bola Tinubu’s administration. El-Rufai had earlier described the current state of governance and opposition in Nigeria as a “national emergency” during a national conference in Abuja.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Daniel Bwala, the Special Adviser to the President on Policy, responded via his X handle, questioning El-Rufai’s motives. He suggested that the former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) was driven by personal grievances rather than patriotism, highlighting the irony of El-Rufai now seeking to unseat a government he had helped to form.
El-Rufai swiftly dismissed Bwala’s claim that he sought a position in Tinubu’s administration, reiterating that he had made it clear to the President that he was not interested in joining the government. He accused Bwala and other supporters of the Tinubu administration of lacking the moral flexibility to defend the current government. El-Rufai further described them as “latter-day converts” to Tinubu’s cause.
He stated that even if he had stayed in Tinubu’s government, he would have continued speaking out about issues within the APC, a party he helped found.
In response, Bwala acknowledged El-Rufai’s intellect but questioned the true motivations behind his criticisms, suggesting that they were rooted in a desire for vengeance. He advised El-Rufai to resolve his grievances internally and not through public outbursts.
Bwala also defended the APC, asserting it remains the “only organized party with identifiable structures across the country” and urged El-Rufai to return to the party and address his concerns in a dignified manner.
