Uba Sani, El-Rufai differ over Tinubu

The rift between Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani and his predecessor, Nasir El-Rufai, escalated yesterday as both traded words over alleged moves to unseat President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in 2027. Though their fallout began last year, they had largely avoided direct public confrontation until El-Rufai took a swipe at Sani for defending Tinubu, in a […]

The rift between Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani and his predecessor, Nasir El-Rufai, escalated yesterday as both traded words over alleged moves to unseat President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in 2027.

Though their fallout began last year, they had largely avoided direct public confrontation until El-Rufai took a swipe at Sani for defending Tinubu, in a televised interview.

El-Rufai, whose ministerial nomination in 2023, was blocked by certain forces said to be within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), has recently become a vocal critic of both the party and the Tinubu administration.

At a democracy conference in Abuja last week, he alleged that the ruling government was undermining democracy and attempting to weaken opposition parties. Also speaking at the event, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar accused the presidency of offering N50 million to opposition parties to dilute their influence.

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They’re just trying to confuse Nigerians – Gov Sani

Reacting on TVC’s Beyond 100 Days on Monday, Governor Sani dismissed the allegations as baseless.

“It’s unfortunate that they are making allegations without any facts. They’re just trying to confuse Nigerians,” he said.

Questioning their democratic credentials, he added: “What have they done to advance democracy in this country? What was their role in entrenching democratic values in Nigeria?”

He argued that those calling for a coalition were merely seeking power, not national progress.

“Most of them were in government less than two years ago. What did they do when they were in power? That’s the real question,” he said.

“They were in power for nearly eight years, some even longer. If they had something better to offer, why didn’t they do it then? Nigerians are watching and know that their fight against Tinubu is not about offering better leadership but about regaining power,” he added.

In what seemed to be a veiled reference to El-Rufai, whose ministerial nomination was blocked by the National Assembly over security concerns, Sani suggested that bitterness over exclusion from government might be driving the criticism.

“Are they speaking out now simply because they are no longer in government? We sat together at the same table, fighting for Tinubu because we believed he was the best man to move the country forward,” he said.

 

Kaduna people will judge at the right time – El-Rufai

In a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday, El-Rufai fired back, saying the governor is “embarrassingly and sycophantically rambling every day.”

According to El-Rufai, who played a key role in the emergence of Uba Sani as governor, “I used to wonder why? However, confirming that the federal government ‘reimbursements, interventions and grants’ in excess of N150bn have been given selectively to Kaduna by Tinubu, in the last 18 months, now explains everything.

“By all means, defend Asiwaju for the conditional cash transfer. Asiwaju has earned it, coming from you. The people of Kaduna State will judge at the right time and place. Have a nice day. – #ConcernedKadunaCitizen,” he wrote.

In another post, El-Rufai quoted former British Prime Minister Tony Blair as saying sometime ago: “And in a developing nation, where people struggle to put food on the table, go to school, get rudimentary healthcare, eke out an existence not a career, (social services) delivery can be the difference between life and death; or at least the difference between a life with hope and one without it.

“They (citizens) want the problems impacting their lives solved or at least mitigated. They want a higher standard of living, a better quality of life, improved healthcare and education and security.”

 

Former El-Rufai’s commissioners accuse Sani of betrayal

Despite El-Rufai endorsing Sani as his successor, their relationship deteriorated soon after the governor took office, with the state Assembly immediately launching a probe into the eight-year term of the former.

Many commentators had insinuated that Governor Sani appeared to be fighting El-Rufai on behalf of the latter’s opponents in the Tinubu government, who were believed to be behind his failed ministerial appointment.

But during his TVC interview, Sani denied the existence of a rift, insisting that their relationship remained cordial.

“I can tell you there’s no problem between me and my predecessor. Our relationship is very cordial, and there’s nothing wrong with our relationship. What is more important here is moving our state forward,” he said.

However, former commissioners under El-Rufai countered this in a statement yesterday, accusing the governor of dishonesty.

“Uba Sani keeps saying in public that he has good relations with Mallam Nasir El-Rufai. But he cannot credibly claim to believe himself or his own assertion that he has nothing to do with the House of Assembly ‘report,’” they said.

“It is telling that Uba Sani is unable to admit in public that he has broken ties with his predecessor whom he used to praise effusively and incessantly as his leader and mentor.

“It is a mark of dishonour to persist in claiming that there is no rift with a man whom you have serially betrayed and slandered, despite his matchless contributions to your career and emergence as a presidential aide, senator, and now governor,” the statement read in part.

Reports on El-Rufai’s administration’s indictment in N423bn probe resurfaces

The former commissioners’ statement came amid renewed attention on the Kaduna State Assembly’s investigation into the El-Rufai administration, which resurfaced online yesterday as the spat between the governor and his successor gained traction.

It would be recalled that in June 2024, the assembly’s ad-hoc committee indicted El-Rufai and several of his key cabinet members for alleged corruption in contract awards and the management of domestic and foreign loans amounting to N423 billion. These allegations were promptly dismissed by the former commissioners while El-Rufai filed a fundamental rights enforcement suit at the Federal High Court in Kaduna, arguing that he was denied a fair hearing. The case was later transferred to the Kaduna State High Court, and he has since appealed the ruling at the Court of Appeal.

Since the indictment, some former officials in his administration have been interrogated by anti-corruption agencies. Two of them—Bashir Saidu and Jimi Lawal—have been arraigned before the Federal High Court in Kaduna on charges filed by the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) and remain in custody.