•Says Tinubu Only Deceived Him With Request to Serve in Cabinet
Safiu Kehinde
Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has urged Nigerians to disregard claims of being rejected by the National Assembly during his screening for Ministerial appointment.
As against the rejection claim, El-Rufai said the National Assembly had nothing to do with it.
The former Kaduna governor stated this during an interview on Arise TV on Monday- his first media interview since he left office.
Speaking on the scenario around his failed ministerial appointment, El-Rufai accused President Bola Tinubu of deceiving him with request to serve in his cabinet.
He alleged that the President never wanted him in the cabinet despite begging him for support.
“The president begged me publicly to come and serve in his government. After two months of negotiations, we finally agreed that he would nominate me as minister.
“I think along the line, either the president changed his mind. Please don’t believe the story that the NASS rejected me; the National Assembly has nothing to do with this. The president didn’t want me in his cabinet.” El-Rufai said.
NPO Reports that the former Governor had played a prominent role in the process that led to the emergence of Tinubu as President.
During the campaign Tinubu had, on one occasion, openly told El-Rufai he would not allow him leave the country saying he had a role to play his then incoming administration.
Dismissing any security report that purportedly nailed him and prevented him from being cleared for ministerial position, El-Rufai said that having been governor in one of the most volatile states in the country, there was no report whatsoever that nailed noting that former governors who had cases around them were cleared for ministerial positions.
He said, “What was the security issue? I have been the governor for 8 years in one of the most difficult states in the country. Where is the report? What about other ministers who are far less qualified and have huge controversies around them that scale through because the president makes a call”
Speaking further during the interview, the former governor said that those implementing some of the policies of the Tinubu administration are te wrong sets of people who could have made better the economy.
He said, “I support some of (Tinubu) policies; most of the economic policies are the right orthodox policies, but the sequencing is wrong and the quality of the people implementing the reforms leaves much to be desired.”
On the alleged lopsidedness of Tinubu’s appointments, El-Rufai said the Yoruba should not be viewed as having an edge adding that Tinubu is only appointing those he called “his boys.”
“President Tinubu is appointing his own boys, not because they’re Yoruba, and most of his appointments do not reasonably cover the Southwest. People should stop confusing the two; the appointments are not balanced, but it’s not a Yoruba thing. Please don’t punish the Yorubas,” he added
Speaking of his falling out with some of his friends who are currently in government, El-Rufai said the current National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu and his successor Uba Sani were his friends at some points but no longer his friends.
On Ribadu, El-Rufai said the National Security Adviser is bent on tarnishing his image adding that at the heart of Ribadu’s alleged issue with him is his ambition tp contest for presidency after Tinubu.
On the possibility of leaving the All Progressive Congress, El-Rufai said he did not leave the party adding however that the party has left him behind.
“One thing I can say for sure is that PDP is not a party I will go to ever. I thought about it and decided long ago, and nothing has changed; in fact, if anything, the PDP has gotten worse,” he added.
He said he is not ready to retire from politics, adding “so sooner or later I may have to find another platform to pursue the progressive values that I believe in if I can’t find them in the APC.”