The Presidency and the ruling All Progressives Congress, on Monday, dismissed moves by former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, to galvanise opposition figures towards unseating President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 election.
According to The PUNCH, they accused El-Rufai of being driven by “an inordinate ambition that is destined to fail” in his defection to the Social Democratic Party.
Also on Monday, the APC noted that El-Rufai’s plan to mobilise against Tinubu’s re-election in 2027 would not produce any significant outcomes.
El-Rufai, earlier on Monday, announced his defection from the APC to the opposition SDP, vowing to mobilise against the APC government in 2027.
“I will focus on engaging with and persuading other opposition leaders and parties to join us and congregate under a unified democratic platform to challenge the APC in all elections and by-elections,” El-Rufai stated.
Citing irreconcilable differences with the APC leadership, El-Rufai expressed disappointment in the ruling party, stating that over the past two years, the party had strayed from its progressive principles.
El-Rufai confirmed he had submitted his resignation letter to the ruling party and further explained that after consulting with his mentors, colleagues and supporters, he decided to join the SDP in preparation for the 2027 general election.
The Presidency, however, said El-Rufai’s switch to the SDP was a flawed move if he intended to unseat the governing party.
The Special Adviser to the President on Policy Communications, Daniel Bwala, stated that while El-Rufai has the constitutional right to change parties, his motives will be closely examined in the coming days.
Bwala, in a post on his verified X handle, @DanielBwala, downplayed El-Rufai’s political significance in politics, arguing that his relevance was neither sudden nor extraordinary.
He criticised the former governor’s decision to side with opposition figures, saying that attempting to unseat the incumbent government was not necessarily an ideological change.
In its reaction, the Kaduna APC said it was not worried by El-Rufai’s exit from the party, describing it as political gyration.
Speaking to journalists in Kaduna on Monday, the Kaduna APC Secretary, Yahaya Baba-Pate, said the party remained focused on securing the state for President Bola Tinubu and Governor Uba Sani in 2027.
Pate expressed confidence in the party’s growing strength in the state, pointing to the influx of prominent politicians into the party.
He assured APC members that El-Rufai’s departure would not impact the party’s prospects.
Pate said, “We are unperturbed by former Governor Nasir El-Rufai’s defection to another party. Our main focus in Kaduna is on how to deliver the state to both President Bola Tinubu and Governor Uba Sani in 2027.
“The APC in Kaduna State is growing day by day, judging from the calibre of politicians streaming into the party daily.
“So, we are not disturbed by anybody defecting to another party based on our governor’s inclusive governance in the state.”
The former Federal Capital Territory minister had been associating with the 2023 Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, and other opposition political figures of late.
At a national conference on strengthening democracy in Nigeria, held in Abuja in January, El-Rufai asked the opposition parties in the country to unite to face the APC.
Also at the event were Atiku; a former governor of Ekiti State, Dr Kayode Fayemi; representative of the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, among others.
El-Rufai, after the conference, granted an interview on Arise TV, where he blasted the leadership of the party for derailing from the vision of the founding fathers.
He criticised the National Executive Council and the Board of Trustees of the ruling party for failing to convene meetings throughout last year.
After the interview, he visited the national chairman of the SDP, Musa Garbam, and the leadership of the Kaduna State chapter of the PDP.
He skipped a meeting of the APC national caucus and National Executive Council held last month in Abuja, claiming he did not get the invite.
The former Kaduna governor met with former President Muhammadu Buhari at the weekend, followed by a trip to Lagos to meet with former Osun State governor and former Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola and the founder of the Citadel Global Community Church and former APC presidential aspirant, Pastor Tunde Bakare.
While the specifics of El-Rufai’s discussions with the two figures were not disclosed, the visits were believed to be part of his political manoeuvring ahead of the 2027 general election.
He rounded off his activities for Sunday with the breaking of fast at Atiku’s residence in Abuja.
Less than 24 hours after their meeting on Sunday evening, Atiku and El-Rufai were again seen together on Monday afternoon at the burial of a classmate of the former vice president, Prof Kharisu Chukkol, at the National Mosque, Abuja.
Posting the photo on his X handle, Atiku wrote, “Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’un. With total submission to the will of the Almighty Allah, I joined others at the funeral prayer of my classmate, Prof Kharisu Chukkol, at the National Mosque, Abuja.
“May his family be comforted. I pray that Allah will forgive his sins and grant him Jannatul Firdaus. Amin. -AA.”
A former lawmaker, Shehu Sani, pooh-poohed El-Rufai’s move to the SDP, saying it would not alter the political landscape of the state.
Sani, who represented the Kaduna Central Senatorial District in the 8th National Assembly, noted that El-Rufai’s political relevance and influence had waned.
“Leaving APC for SDP wouldn’t make any difference for someone with no political relevance again,” he declared.
Sani also expressed the assurance that both Tinubu and Sani would secure re-election in 2027.
“But one thing is sure, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Governor Uba Sani will be voted again,” he said.
The former National Vice Chairman (North-West) of the APC and a key strategist in the ongoing proposed coalition among opposition parties, Salihu Lukman, bemoaned the defection of El-Rufai to the SDP.
Lukman, a loyalist of the ex-governor, said the defection was too premature and was not the kind of collective move they earlier projected.
The former Director-General of the Progressives Governors Forum disclosed this in an interview with some selected journalists in Abuja.
He said, “Yes, I am close to Mallam El-Rufai to the extent that we come from the same state and were in the same party.
“I had the privilege of being nominated by him to serve on the National Working Committee of the APC. Of course, as everybody knows, we have our own disagreements.
“It (defection) is expected. Even after the interview he granted on Arise TV, you can see the handwriting. However, I expected that he should have been a bit patient for us to walk out as a group, based on the ongoing negotiation.
“But he knows better, and I do hope his decision is not going to become like a kind of breakaway from whatever we are doing. I hope that in the end, we should be able to reconcile and work together under one platform.”
When asked if his camp and some key northern elites would join El-Rufai in the SDP, Lukman expressed reservations about the leadership of the opposition party.
The former APC chieftain, however, noted that they might take their chances if certain conditions were met.
