Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, has clarified that the Progressives Governors’ Forum (PGF) cannot intervene in the ministerial nomination issues concerning former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai.
Sule confirmed that El-Rufai remains a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), despite the National Assembly rejecting his ministerial nomination in August 2023.
“El-Rufai has not left our party; he is still part of our party,” Sule stated during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday, January 8. “The issues surrounding his nomination and subsequent rejection by the Senate or security agencies are not matters we have discussed within the Progressives Governors’ Forum or the Nigeria Governors’ Forum. These are not issues for us to address, as it is the president’s prerogative to nominate ministers, and there are agencies, including the National Assembly, that either confirm or reject those nominations. In El-Rufai’s case, he was rejected.”
El-Rufai, a significant figure within the northern APC bloc, played a pivotal role in ensuring the party’s presidential ticket for the 2023 election went to a southern candidate. This decision aligned with Nigeria’s informal power rotation arrangement between the northern and southern regions following President Muhammadu Buhari’s completion of his eight-year tenure from the North-West geopolitical zone.
As a vocal supporter of Bola Tinubu for the APC presidential nomination, El-Rufai, alongside other northern governors, endorsed Tinubu over other prominent northern aspirants, including former Senate President Ahmad Lawan and former Jigawa Governor Mohammed Badaru. Tinubu secured the APC ticket and won the 2023 presidential election.
Following Tinubu’s victory, El-Rufai was nominated for a ministerial role, but his nomination was rejected by the Senate, citing security concerns raised by the Department of State Services (DSS).
Since the rejection, El-Rufai has not participated in APC events and has not been seen near President Tinubu, despite his earlier support during the campaign. Instead, he has been spotted with leaders of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), sparking rumors of a potential defection, though he has denied these claims.
In addition, tensions have risen between El-Rufai and his successor as Kaduna governor, Sani Uba, with the state assembly investigating allegations of corruption during El-Rufai’s eight-year tenure.
